Bipolar disorder overview and clinical characteristics

Bipolar disorder, which is also sometimes known as manic depression, is a serious psychiatric illness experienced by approximately 1% to 15% of the population at large (Mannu et al., 2011). The disorder is characterized by severe and unusual shifts in activity, mood, energy, and ability to perform everyday tasks (National Institute of Mental Health, 2012). Generally, the disorder is experienced as a depressive phase 70% of the time, and an excitatory phase 30% of the time (Mannu et al., 2011). It is a complex illness that requires the patient to be monitored to ensure that the treatment they are receive is meeting their needs and minimizing the symptoms being experienced (Mannu et al., 2011). Efforts for pharmacological treatments have unfortunately not been highly effective. It is possible that other non-pharmacological treatment options may prove effective in the treatment of the disorder. The following explores the potential effectiveness of a physical intervention as well as a cognitive intervention for the treatment of bipolar disorder.

Since pharmacological interventions have been proven as limited in their effectiveness for the treatment of bipolar disorder, Mannu et al. (2011) sought to investigate the effectiveness of a physical intervention, hoping for encouraging results. The intervention under examination in this study was a radioelectric asymmetric brain stimulation device associated with lithium (REAC-lithium). The researchers evaluated the long-term effectiveness of this intervention in comparison with previously used pharmacological treatments in research participants with bipolar disorder. The effectiveness of the REAC-lithium was assessed as the number of symptom recurrences that happened in relation to the timeframe prior to the introduction of the REAC-lithium as a treatment (Mannu et al., 2011).

Results of the study indicated that the REAC-lithium was highly effective in reducing symptoms among individuals with bipolar disorder (Mannu et al., 2011). These findings were especially true with regard to depressive symptoms, which account for the majority of the symptoms experienced with the disorder (Mannu et al., 2011). It was suggested by the researchers that the intervention resulted in an optimization of global brain functioning, thus leading to improved outcomes. Furthermore, this non-pharmacological intervention holds promise as an effective treatment for bipolar disorder.