Bipolar disorder: Manic episodes in spring summer and autumn winter depressions.

-25% of patients with bipolar disorder have a seasonal course. Changes in the photoperiod appear to be the most decisive for the implementation of these episodes

– of environmental factors which are of greater importance in bipolar disorder, include drugs, mainly cocaine, amphetamines and cannabis as triggers of the disorder

– stress also seems to play a key role as a trigger of the disease and of successive episodes ”, says José Manuel Goikolea, psychiatrist of the Bipolar disorder of the Hospital Clínic of Barcelona program

-Goikolea participated in the 20th update course in Psychiatry, which was held last week in Vitoria, with the Conference ‘ genotype, environment and bipolar disorder ’, in which spoke about environmental and genetic factors that influence the appearance of this pathology

Vitoria-Gasteiz, March 2012.- the time of the year in which we are also can affect mental health. It is one of the premises has been dealt with last week at the 20th update course in Psychiatry, which was held in Vitoria-Gasteiz between 7 and 9 March, and which has been devoted to how the environment and environment can affect the development of mental disorders. In the case of patients already suffering from bipolar disorder, this condition is more pronounced, since 25% of them are seasonal course, i.e., different symptoms of the disease depending on the season of the year.

Thus, manic episodes are most characteristic of the spring/summer months, depressive paintings are most common at the time of autumn-winter. Between the end of the summer and beginning of autumn predominate mixed episodes. In addition, it appears that changes in the photoperiod are launched the most decisive for the implementation of these episodes. This is what explained in the course organized in Vitoria-Gasteiz the psychiatrist José Manuel Goikolea, program disorder Bipolar of the Hospital Clínic of Barcelona, in his talk ‘ genotype, environment and bipolar disorder ’. Environmental factors directly related to meteorology which have an impact on bipolar disorder ”, says.

Goikolea also spoke about other environmental factors that can be determinants for the onset of the disorder as well as for their development and the severity of their symptoms. The most obvious case is the toxic drugs. The role already known of psychostimulants (cocaine and amphetamines) as triggers for the disorder, various data have been added in recent years on the role of cannabis as flattering of episodes of mania and psychotic symptoms in bipolar disorder ”, said the expert, adding that so much so, which has been described a subgroup of patients in which bipolar disorder begins when an addiction to drugs, in which it is believed, is already present by characteristics of the evolution of the disease, toxins would have had a so decisive role that without them may not have developed bipolar disorder ”.

Stress as a trigger

Also, the psychiatrist examined the role of stress as trigger for bipolar disorder, that, as in almost all psychiatric disorders-also seems to play a key role in the emergence of this disease and its successive episodes. We know that stress causes many neurochemicals and hormonal changes, and genetic burden, the chronic increase in these hormones could cause phenomena of mitochondrial dysfunction, oxidative stress, inflammation and reducing factors neuroprotective ”, drew Goikolea.

Precisely, the genetic load occupied a very prominent role in the talk of this psychiatrist, because bipolar disorder is a disease with a high hereditary component ”. In fact, estimated a heritability of more than 60 per cent according to family studies with twins, and several genes associated with bipolar disorder have already been described.

The Vitoria Psychiatry update course celebrated its 20 anniversary centered in ‘ Psychiatry and environment ’, and during this Congress, among others, over 400 psychiatrists debatieronn on the role played in the mental health factors such as meteorology, climate changepathological gambling, the hypochondria or concern by some imaginary or exaggerated defect in appearance, as well as psychiatric roots of violence.