الفهرس 
Chapter 1Only 14 pages are availabe for public view
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Abstract
Bipolar disorder (BD), also known as bipolar affective disorder or manic depression
disorder. It is a mental disorder characterized by periods of depression and periods of elevated
mood It is a chronic, pervasive, and potentially debilitating illness. Bipolar Disorder is
characterized by dysfunctional affective regulation that typically results in fluctuations between
reduced (depression) and elevated (hypomania/mania) levels of mood, energy and activity
compared to a normal state. The two main subtypes of bipolar affective disorders are bipolar I
disorder (BD-I; formerly named manic-depressive illness) and bipolar II disorder
While prevalence data for BD varies across countries, populations and the applicability of
DSM criteria, is has been estimated that BD has a life time prevalence of 0.1 % to 3.8% in
adulthood. Bipolar Disorder is associated with high rates of impairment, Many adults with BD
experiencing high levels of social and functional difficulties, especially when compared to other
types of mental disorder
The diagnostic criteria for Bipolar Disorder are split into Bipolar I Disorder, Bipolar II
Disorder and Cyclothymic Disorder by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental
Disorders Bipolar I Disorder is characterized by at least one life time occurrence of a manic
episode. A person who is in a manic episode may have an abnormally elevated, expansive or
irritable mood with abnormally increased energy or goal directed activity. This mania will have a
marked impairment in functioning or necessitate hospitalization. Some people with BP I may
also experience periods of major depression. Usual age of onset of the disorder is around 18
years. In children and adolescents the differentiation between mania and normal behavior for the
developmental period can be hard to define and so diagnosis is done on a case by case basis
using the child’s own behavior as a baseline.