A study of the cognitive functions in the first-degree relatives of patients with bipolar disorder

Objective To investigate the cognitive functions in the first-degree relatives of patients with bipolar disorder.Methods 53 first-degree relatives of patients with bipolar disorder and 97 normal controls were tested by 10 neuropsychological tests.Results The scores of immediate logical memory tests in the in relatives(9.11±2.95)were worse than those in the normal controls(12.06±3.21)(P0.01).Meanwhile,the scores of delayed logical memory tests in the relatives(6.89±3.41)were worse than those in the normal controls(10.06±3.30)(P0.01).The numbers of WCST category in the relatives(4.57±1.75)were less than those in normal controls(5.15±1.27)(P0.05).Conclusion The first-degree relatives of the patients with bipolar disorder had executive and verbal memory dysfunction,which may represent the genetic endophenotypes for bipolar disorder.