The association between carotid atherosclerosis and treatment with lithium and antipsychotics in patients with bipolar disorder.

Objectives: Patients with bipolar disorder are at high risk of cardiovascular diseases. Among cardiovascular diseases, coronary heart disease and stroke are the leading causes of premature death and both share the pathogenesis of arterial atherosclerosis. Increased carotid intima-media thickness is sensitive for detecting early atherosclerosis and a practical index for predicting cardiovascular diseases.

Risk factors for early circulatory mortality in patients with schizophrenia.

Patients with schizophrenia have higher mortality and shortened life expectancy than the general population, and cardiovascular disease (CVD) accounts for up to 50% cases of early mortality in schizophrenia. We determined risk factors, particularly pathophysiological changes, for early circulatory mortality in schizophrenia. In this multi-institutional, nested, case-control study, we enrolled consecutive inpatients with schizophrenia admitted to three psychiatric hospitals in the northern Taiwan.

State-dependent alterations of lipid profiles in patients with bipolar disorder.

Objective Serum lipid levels may be associated with the affective severity of bipolar disorder, but data on lipid profiles in Asian patients with bipolar disorder and the lipid alterations in different states of opposite polarities are scant. We investigated the lipid profiles of patients in the acute affective, partial, and full remission state in bipolar mania and depression. Methods The physically healthy patients aged between 18 and 45 years with bipolar I disorder, as well as age-matched healthy normal controls were enrolled.

Risk factors for early cardiovascular mortality in patients with bipolar disorder.

Aim: We attempted to determine risk factors, particularly pathophysiological changes, for early cardiovascular mortality in bipolar disorder (BD).

Methods: A total of 5416 inpatients with bipolar I disorder were retrospectively followed through record linkage for cause of death. A total of 35 patients dying from cardiovascular disease (CVD; ICD 9: 401-443) before the age of 65 years were identified.

Diabetes mellitus and first episode mania associated with cardiovascular diseases in patients with older-age bipolar disorder.

Patients with bipolar disorder (BD) are at high risk for developing cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) during aging process. However, investigations are lacking regarding the risk factors for CVDs specific to BD patients. The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between CVDs and traditional risk factors in association with the characteristics of BD in older age.

A Prognosis Tool Based on Fuzzy Anthropometric and Questionnaire Data for Obstructive Sleep Apnea Severity.

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) are linked to the augmented risk of morbidity and mortality. Although polysomnography is considered a well-established method for diagnosing OSA, it suffers the weakness of time consuming and labor intensive, and requires doctors and attending personnel to conduct an overnight evaluation in sleep laboratories with dedicated systems. This study aims at proposing an efficient diagnosis approach for OSA on the basis of anthropometric and questionnaire data.

Psychological Outcomes and Medical Morbidity of Patients With Bipolar Disorder and Co-Occurring Alcohol Use Disorder.

Objective: Patients with bipolar disorder are at a high risk for comorbid alcohol use disorder, and both disorders are associated with poor outcomes and multiple morbidities. This study aimed to explore not only the psychosocial functioning and psychopathological outcomes but also the medical morbidity of patients with bipolar disorder with and without alcohol use disorder.

Methods: Outpatients with bipolar I disorder (DSM-IV) were recruited from a psychiatric teaching hospital in Taiwan (N = 393).

Physiological characteristics of patients with schizophrenia prematurely dying from circulatory diseases.

Introduction: Patients with schizophrenia before reaching geriatric age are at high risk of circulatory mortality. However, investigations are lacking on the characteristics of physiological measurement among these at-risk patients.

Methods: In this study, we followed acutely inpatients with schizophrenia disorder for cause of death through record linkage to the Death Certification System in Taiwan.

Use of oximetry as a screening tool for obstructive sleep apnea: a case study in Taiwan.

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a relatively common disease in the general population. Patients with OSA have a high risk of various comorbid medical diseases. Polysomnography (PSG) is the current gold standard for diagnosing OSA but is time consuming and expensive.

Persistent inflammation and its relationship to leptin and insulin in phases of bipolar disorder from acute depression to full remission.

Objective: A proinflammatory phase with various immunomodulatory mechanisms has been noted in bipolar mania and major depression. Weight gain and increased production of leptin may be associated with immunomodulation and insulin resistance in bipolar disorder. However, immunomodulation and its linkage with leptin and insulin in the depressive episode of bipolar disorder remain unclear.

Neuroprogressive effects of lifetime illness duration in older adults with bipolar disorder.

Objective: The aim of the present study was to examine the long-term effects of bipolar disorder (BD) on brain structure (gray matter volumes).

Methods: Fifty-four adults with BD [mean (standard deviation) age = 64.4 (5.

The link between high-sensitivity C-reactive protein and orbitofrontal cortex in euthymic bipolar disorder.

Objective: C-reactive protein (CRP), a marker of underlying low-grade inflammation, has been associated with the pathophysiology of bipolar disorder. Additionally, bipolar disorder may be accompanied by functional or structural cerebral alterations. We attempted to discover whether serum high-sensitivity CRP (hs-CRP) levels are linked to the structural volume change of a specific brain region along with cognitive performance.

The risk factors for elderly patients with bipolar disorder having cerebral infarction.

Objective: Patients with bipolar disorder are at high risk of developing strokes in the older life. Silent cerebral infarctions (SCIs) could be common in the elderly patients with bipolar disorder, but only small sample size reports are available. The purpose of this study was to assess the proportion of SCIs and determine the risk factors for cerebral infarction in elderly patients with bipolar disorder.

Inflammatory markers and their relationships with leptin and insulin from acute mania to full remission in bipolar disorder.

Background: Weight gain and increased production of leptin may be associated with immuno-modulation and insulin resistance in bipolar disorder. The links among inflammatory markers, leptin, and insulin of bipolar patients from acute mania to full remission remain unclear.

Methods: Thirty-three healthy, bipolar I patients under 45 years of age were enrolled.

Volumetric reduction in various cortical regions of elderly patients with early-onset and late-onset mania.

Background: Few studies have examined alterations of the brain in elderly bipolar patients. As late-onset mania is associated with increased cerebrovascular morbidity and neurological damage compared with typical/early-onset mania, we investigated differences in the volume of various cortical regions between elderly patients with early-onset versus late-onset mania.

Methods: We recruited 44 bipolar patients aged over 60 years, who underwent volumetric magnetic resonance imaging at 1.