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Differences and overlap in self-reported symptoms of bipolar disorder and borderline personality disorder

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 October 2015

I. Baryshnikov ,
K. Aaltonen ,
M. Koivisto ,
P. Näätänen ,
B. Karpov ,
T. Melartin ,
M. Heikkinen ,
M. Ketokivi ,
G. Joffe  and
E. Isometsä
I. Baryshnikov
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, PO Box 22, Välskärinkatu 12 A, 00014Helsinki, Finland
K. Aaltonen
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, PO Box 22, Välskärinkatu 12 A, 00014Helsinki, Finland Department of Social Services and Health Care, Helsinki, Finland Department of Psychiatry, Helsinki University Central Hospital, PO Box 590, 00029 HUSHelsinki, Finland
M. Koivisto
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, PO Box 22, Välskärinkatu 12 A, 00014Helsinki, Finland
P. Näätänen
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, PO Box 22, Välskärinkatu 12 A, 00014Helsinki, Finland
B. Karpov
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, PO Box 22, Välskärinkatu 12 A, 00014Helsinki, Finland
T. Melartin
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, PO Box 22, Välskärinkatu 12 A, 00014Helsinki, Finland Department of Psychiatry, Helsinki University Central Hospital, PO Box 590, 00029 HUSHelsinki, Finland
M. Heikkinen
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, PO Box 22, Välskärinkatu 12 A, 00014Helsinki, Finland Department of Social Services and Health Care, Helsinki, Finland
M. Ketokivi
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, PO Box 22, Välskärinkatu 12 A, 00014Helsinki, Finland Operations and Technology Department, IE Business School – IE University, Madrid, Spain
G. Joffe
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, PO Box 22, Välskärinkatu 12 A, 00014Helsinki, Finland
E. Isometsä*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, PO Box 22, Välskärinkatu 12 A, 00014Helsinki, Finland
*
⁎Corresponding author. Tel.: +358 9 4711; fax: +358 9 47163735. E-mail address:erkki.isometsa@hus.fi (E. Isometsä).
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Abstract

Background

Differential diagnosis between bipolar disorder (BD) and borderline personality disorder (BPD) is often challenging due to some overlap in symptoms and comorbidity of disorders. We investigated correlations in self-reported symptoms of BD and BPD in screening questionnaires at the levels of both total scores and individual items and explored overlapping dimensions.

Methods

The McLean Screening Instrument (MSI) for BPD and the Mood Disorder Questionnaire (MDQ) for BD were filled in by patients with unipolar and bipolar mood disorders (n = 313) from specialized psychiatric care within a pilot study of the Helsinki University Psychiatric Consortium. Pearson's correlation coefficients between total scores and individual items of the MSI and the MDQ were estimated. Relationships between MDQ and MSI were evaluated by exploratory factor analysis (EFA).

Results

The correlation between total scores of the MDQ and MSI was moderate (r = 0.431, P < 0.001). Significant correlations were found between the MSI items of “impulsivity” and “mood instability” and all MDQ items (P < 0.01). In the EFA, the MSI “impulsivity” and “mood instability” items had significant cross-loadings (0.348 and 0.298, respectively) with the MDQ factor. The MDQ items of “irritability”, “flight of thoughts” and “distractibility” (0.280, 0.210 and 0.386, respectively) cross-loaded on the MSI factor.

Conclusions

The MDQ and MSI items of “affective instability”, “impulsivity”, “irritability”, “flight of thoughts” and “distractibility” appear to overlap in content. The other scale items are more disorder-specific, and thus, may help to distinguish BD and BPD.

Keywords

Borderline personality disorderBipolar disorderMcLean Screening InstrumentMood Disorder Questionnaire
Type
Original article
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 30 , Issue 8 , November 2015 , pp. 914 - 919
Copyright
Copyright © European Psychiatric Association 2020

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Footnotes

1

Tel.: +358 9 4711.

2

Tel.: +358 9 4711; fax: +358 9 47163735.

3

Tel.: +358 9 4711; fax: +358 9 47175455.

4

Tel.: +358 40 1731112.

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