LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Manic Depression: Bipolar Disorder
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"I had to start my life over again at age 58, and I was suffering from manic depression," Mr. Marinus said. He quit drinking and started taking olanzapine. Coincidentally, the drug, sold under the brand name Zyprexa, was approved earlier this month for the treatment of bipolar disorder. (It used to be approved only for schizophrenia.) The drug, a product of Eli Lilly Canada Inc., is the first new medication approved for treating the condition since lithium hit the marketplace three decades ago.
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Like every mental illness, there is no definitive evidence concerning the etiology of manic-depression... known as bipolar disorder. The disorder is characterized by alternating periods of depression and mania and occurs in 1% of the population. The depressive episodes can range in severity from dysthymia to major depressive episodes. The major depressive episodes are classified as periods of at least two weeks in length during which sadness, lethargy, insomnia or excessive sleep, increase or decrease in appetite, hopelessness, and suicidal ideation or suicide attempts are present. Dysthymia is the milder form of depression, during which suicidal ideation and attempts are not present. Manic episodes are of at least two weeks in duration and are characterized by euphoria, flight of ideas, grandiose delusions, pressured speech, increased activity, and insomnia.
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Bipolar disorder is distinguished from depressive disorders by the presence of manic episodes (mania) in addition to depressive episodes (depression). Symptoms of mania and depression can ... occur simultaneously, and these periods are called mixed episodes. In some individuals, particularly children and adolescents, the disorder produces chronic irritability or explosiveness with no discernible pattern and few periods of wellness. During mild manic episodes (known as hypomania), many individuals experience periods of tremendous productivity and creativity.
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Bipolar mood disorder... known as manic depression, is a treatable illness involving extreme changes in mood, thought, energy, and behavior. A person with bipolar disorder has moods that usually alternate between mania, or extremely "up" mood, and depression, or extremely "down" mood. This change or "mood swing" can last for hours, days, weeks, or even months. Typically, someone with bipolar mood disorder experiences one or two cycles a year, with manic episodes generally occurring in the spring or fall.
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Danish researchers have discovered two risk genes for mental illness, particularly schizophrenia and bipolar disorder (formerly called manic depression). The research team identified the genes on chromosome 22 in a research project in which persons from Scotland and the Faeroe Islands participated. The team found that the patients who showed signs of mental illness had mutations in the two genes on that chromosome, GPR24 and BRD1. The discovery does not mean... that the mutations in the two genes automatically result in mental illness; there are numerous environmental factors also at work.
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In bipolar disorder... called manic-depressive disorder, a person experiences mood changes that fluctuate between periods of abnormally high energy and extreme depression. Bipolar disorder is estimated to affect approximately 1-3% of adults, but also can affect children and adolescents. Untreated, this disorder is associated with greater risk of drug and alcohol addiction, of interpersonal relationship difficulties, of school and, later, work problems, of engaging in risky behaviors, and of suicide.
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Bipolar Disorder