Aspecte diagnostice, terapeutice şi evolutive în tulburarea afectivă bipolară

Bipolar affective disorder (BAD) is a psychiatric pathology defined by changes in mood and voluntary activity with a marked resonance on functionality. Although relatively com­mon, BAD is still an underdiagnosed disorder, mainly due to the misdiagnosis as unipolar depression. The diag­­no­sis and treatment of BAD are two aspects of real im­por­tance due to the high morbidity and mortality of this pathology, therefore an early identification of symptoms and an individualized therapeutic approach improve the prognosis of the disease and, thus, the quality of life. Although the attitude of the ge­ne­ral population towards psychiatric pathologies has registered a positive evolution in recent years, towards the acceptance of these patients, stigma is still present in society. In addition to stigma, fluctuating disease awareness, low adherence to treat­ment, predisposition to get involved in activities with po­ten­tially negative consequences and the use of psychoactive sub­stances are factors that contribute to a decreased quality of life of patients with bipolar disorder.