Bipolar disorder I.: Temperament and character

Background: The nature of the relationship between personality and bipolar affective disorders is an important but unanswered question. Methods: We have studied personality in bipolar patients by using the Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI). TCI were administered to 100 euthymic bipolar patients and 100 controls from the normal population. Results: Bipolar patients were significantly higher in harm avoidance (HA) and lower in reward dependence (RD), self-directedness (SD), and cooperativeness (CO) than controls. Bipolar patients are more fatigable, less sentimental, more independent, less purposeful, less resourceful, less empathic, less helpful, less pure-hearted, and have less impulse control than controls. Bipolar II patients are more impulsive, more fatigable, less resourceful, and have less impulse control than bipolar I patients. Limitations: Our results are limited to euthymic bipolar patients and cannot be generalized to affective disorders. Conclusions: Even when clinically euthymic on lithium maintenance, bipolar patients continue to have a characteristic cognitive deficit. This is in agreement with cognitive theories about cognitive deficits in depression that are regarded as important vulnerability factors in mood disorders. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.