Psychiatry researchJul 5, 2011

How natural impulsiveness relates to symptoms in stable bipolar disorder patients

Circadian Biology Weekly Brief ↗PubMed ↗DOI ↗

Updated Apr 4, 2026

Abstract

Trait impulsivity scores were significantly higher in patients with bipolar disorder compared to healthy controls.

The study involved 71 patients with bipolar disorder who were in a stable mood state.
Trait impulsivity was measured using the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale and compared to 50 healthy individuals.
All subscale scores on the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale were elevated in bipolar patients.
Higher impulsivity scores were linked to depressive episodes, longer illness duration, and a history of psychotic mood episodes and suicide attempts.
These associations remained significant after adjusting for age, gender, and education.

Simplified

The purpose of this study was to examine trait impulsivity in patients with bipolar disorder and explore the possible connections between impulsivity and clinical presentation of the illness. Diagnoses were based on the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV. The sociodemographic and clinical properties of 71 patients with bipolar disorder, who were euthymic according to Young Mania Rating Scale and Hamilton Depression Scale scores, were recorded. Their trait impulsivity was evaluated by using the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale (BIS) and impulsivity subscale of the Temperament and Character Inventory, and the results were compared with 50 age- and sex-matched healthy controls and among patients with different clinical properties. All BIS-11 subscale scores were higher in bipolar than in comparison subjects. There were no effects of education and age. Elevated BIS-11 scores were associated with predominant depressive polarity, longer duration of illness and a history of psychotic mood episodes and suicide attempts. These relationships persisted when age, gender, and education were taken into account. These results show that after accounting for common confounding factors, trait-like impulsivity was substantially higher in subjects with bipolar disorder than in nonbipolar comparison subjects and may vary according to different clinical presentations.

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How natural impulsiveness relates to symptoms in stable bipolar disorder patients

Abstract

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