TY - JOUR
T1 - High educational performance is a distinctive feature of bipolar disorder: a study on cognition in bipolar disorder, schizophrenia patients, relatives and controls
AU - Vreeker, A.
AU - Boks, M. P. M.
AU - Abramovic, L.
AU - Verkooijen, S.
AU - van Bergen, A. H.
AU - Hillegers, M. H. J.
AU - Spijker, A. T.
AU - Hoencamp, E.
AU - Regeer, E. J.
AU - Riemersma-Van der Lek, R. F.
AU - Stevens, A. W. M. M.
AU - Schulte, P. F. J.
AU - Vonk, R.
AU - Hoekstra, R.
AU - van Beveren, N. J. M.
AU - Kupka, R. W.
AU - Brouwer, R. M.
AU - Bearden, C. E.
AU - MacCabe, J. H.
AU - Genetic Risk and Outcome of Psychosis (GROUP) Investigators
AU - Germeys, Inez
AU - van Os, Jim
AU - Ophoff, R. A.
PY - 2016/3
Y1 - 2016/3
N2 - Background. Schizophrenia is associated with lower intelligence and poor educational performance relative to the general population. This is, to a lesser degree, also found in first-degree relatives of schizophrenia patients. It is unclear whether bipolar disorder I (BD-I) patients and their relatives have similar lower intellectual and educational performance as that observed in schizophrenia.Method. This cross-sectional study investigated intelligence and educational performance in two outpatient samples [494 BD-I patients, 952 schizophrenia spectrum (SCZ) patients], 2231 relatives of BD-I and SCZ patients, 1104 healthy controls and 100 control siblings. Mixed-effects and regression models were used to compare groups on intelligence and educational performance.Results. BD-I patients were more likely to have completed the highest level of education (odds ratio 1.88, 95% confidence interval 1.66-2.70) despite having a lower IQ compared to controls (beta = -9.09, S.E. = 1.27, p < 0.001). In contrast, SCZ patients showed both a lower IQ (beta = -15.31, S.E. = 0.86, p < 0.001) and lower educational levels compared to controls. Siblings of both patient groups had significantly lower IQ than control siblings, but did not differ on educational performance. IQ scores did not differ between BD-I parents and SCZ parents, but BD-I parents had completed higher educational levels.Conclusions. Although BD-I patients had a lower IQ than controls, they were more likely to have completed the highest level of education. This contrasts with SCZ patients, who showed both intellectual and educational deficits compared to healthy controls. Since relatives of BD-I patients did not demonstrate superior educational performance, our data suggest that high educational performance may be a distinctive feature of bipolar disorder patients.
AB - Background. Schizophrenia is associated with lower intelligence and poor educational performance relative to the general population. This is, to a lesser degree, also found in first-degree relatives of schizophrenia patients. It is unclear whether bipolar disorder I (BD-I) patients and their relatives have similar lower intellectual and educational performance as that observed in schizophrenia.Method. This cross-sectional study investigated intelligence and educational performance in two outpatient samples [494 BD-I patients, 952 schizophrenia spectrum (SCZ) patients], 2231 relatives of BD-I and SCZ patients, 1104 healthy controls and 100 control siblings. Mixed-effects and regression models were used to compare groups on intelligence and educational performance.Results. BD-I patients were more likely to have completed the highest level of education (odds ratio 1.88, 95% confidence interval 1.66-2.70) despite having a lower IQ compared to controls (beta = -9.09, S.E. = 1.27, p < 0.001). In contrast, SCZ patients showed both a lower IQ (beta = -15.31, S.E. = 0.86, p < 0.001) and lower educational levels compared to controls. Siblings of both patient groups had significantly lower IQ than control siblings, but did not differ on educational performance. IQ scores did not differ between BD-I parents and SCZ parents, but BD-I parents had completed higher educational levels.Conclusions. Although BD-I patients had a lower IQ than controls, they were more likely to have completed the highest level of education. This contrasts with SCZ patients, who showed both intellectual and educational deficits compared to healthy controls. Since relatives of BD-I patients did not demonstrate superior educational performance, our data suggest that high educational performance may be a distinctive feature of bipolar disorder patients.
KW - Bipolar disorder
KW - cognition
KW - educational performance
KW - familial vulnerability
KW - intelligence
KW - IQ
KW - schizophrenia
U2 - 10.1017/S0033291715002299
DO - 10.1017/S0033291715002299
M3 - Article
C2 - 26621616
SN - 0033-2917
VL - 46
SP - 807
EP - 818
JO - Psychological Medicine
JF - Psychological Medicine
IS - 4
ER -