Bipolar disorder and gender: what are the news?

• Autor(a) principal: Cantilino, Amaury
• Data de Publicação: 2016
• Outros Autores: Rennó Junior, Joel, Ribeiro, Hewdy Lobo, Calvasan, Juliana Pires, Demarque, Renata, Ribeiro, Jerônimo de A. Mendes, Valadares, Gislene, Rocha, Renan, Silva, Antônio Geraldo da
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: por
• Título da fonte: Debates em Psiquiatria (Online)
• Texto Completo: https://revistardp.org.br/revista/article/view/117
• topic: Transtorno bipolar; gênero; diferenças; mulher; Bipolar disorder; gender; differences; women

This article summarizes research published between 2014 and 2016 focusing on differences in clinical care and neurobiology in women and men with bipolar disorder (BD). In BD, female sex correlates with more depressive symptoms and with different comorbidities. Women also present a higher degree of mixed episodes and rapid cycling presentation. Comorbidities, particularly thyroiddisease, obesity, and anxiety disorders occur more frequently in women, while substance use disorders are more common in men. Exercise increases the levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor in women with BD, but not in men. Male and female patients have distinct biomarkers for BD. Menstrually entrained mood fluctuation is more strongly present in women treated for BD than in healthy controls. Lamotrigine may be of use in mitigating this fluctuation. Lithium-associated thyroid dysregulation occurs more frequently in female patients. Men and women with BD receive different treatments in routine clinical settings. Clinicians’ treatment decisions are, to some extent, unduly influenced by the patient’s gender.