‘Ihese are questions which demand further longitudinal research. Future studies should definitely focus on the longitudinal follow-up of patients with pure early-onset BD, ADHD, ADHD, and comorbid BD, and healthy controls (in combination with genetic techniques) to investigate a possible common underlying etiology of both disorders. The lack of available clinical

data currently emphasizes the need for ongoing research Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical and, most importantly, longitudinal data. To date it is not entirely clear whether children with BD will develop bipolar symptoms in adulthood, and classificatory divergences between the ICD-10 and the DSM-IV should be taken into account when addressing this question. Imaging data suggest changes in prefrontal areas both in BD and ADHD; the neurochemical underpinnings of the hypofrontality outlined regarding both disorders and associated cognitive and affective circuitries need to be subject of further investigations, particularly those involving patients with pure BD/PBD.The neurochemical results on changes in 5-HT functioning related Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical to RTD are also only preliminary, with Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical future studies

employing larger sample sizes being required, in combination with imaging and genetic studies. Adoption and twin studies could help to assess the heritability of early-onset BD, which is uncertain to date. Consequently, we have only preliminary evidence that common underlying psychopathophysiological processes in ADHD and early-onset BD possibly influence

such clinical phenomena as attention problems accompanied by affective dysregulation, mood problems, and possibly covarying aggression. Future research should further disentangle the mutual relationship Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical between ADHD and early-onset BD, and identify it as a syndromal complex with a possible common psychopathophysiological entity. Acknowledgments The author was the recipient of an Selleck GSK1120212 unrestricted award donated by the American Psychiatric Association (APA), the American Psychiatric Institute for Research and Education Inhibitors,research,lifescience,medical (APIRE), and Astra Zeneca (“Young Minds in Psychiatry Award”). He has also received research support from the German Society for Social Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine (Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Sozialpâdiatrie Parvulin und Jugendmedizin, DGSPJ) and from the Paul and Ursula Klein Foundation, and a travel stipend donated by the GlaxoSmithKline Foundation. Previous research has also been funded by the Dr August Scheidel Foundation. Selected abbreviations and acronyms ADHD attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder BD bipolar disorder CBCL Child Behavior Checklist PBD pediatric bipolar disorder PFC prefrontal cortex RTD rapid tryptophan depletion
Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) is a chronic and potentially disabling condition affecting from 1 % to 3% of the general adult population.1,2 Similar rates have also been reported for children and adolescents.