There is a great need for discovery of biological markers that could
be used diagnostically for pediatric onset disorders, particularly those
with potentially confusing phenomenology such as pediatric-onset bipolar
disorder (BD). Obtaining these markers would help overcome current
subjective diagnostic techniques of relying on parent and child interview
and symptomatic history. Brain imaging may be the most logical choice for
a diagnostic tool, and certain neurobiological abnormalities have already
been found in pediatric BD. However, much work remains to be done before
neuroimaging can be used reliably to diagnose this disorder, and because
of the nature of BD and the limitations of imaging technology and
technique, neuroimaging will likely at most be only a diagnostic aide in
the near future. In this paper we discuss the characteristics of pediatric
BD that complicate the use of biological markers as diagnostic tools, how
neuroimaging techniques have been used to study pediatric BD so far, and
the limitations and potential of such techniques for future diagnostic
use.This work was supported in part by NIH
Grant MH64460-01 (to K.C.).