Celebrating World Bipolar Day 2025: Best Practices in Treating Bipolar Disorder

Gustavo Alva, MD, FAPA, shares his favorite clinical pearls for treating bipolar disorder in honor or World Bipolar Day 2025.

"The important thing is taking a look at some of the clues. Oftentimes, patients with bipolar disorder aren't necessarily going to be the best historians. They may forget a hypomanic or manic episode," said Alva.

He recommends utilizing ancillary individuals like family, friends, and associates.

"It's useful for us as clinicians to keep in mind some of the tell-tale issues that might actually help us identify someone earlier on," said Alva.

Patients with bipolar disorder may struggle to achieve diagnosis, seeing as many as 4 or 5 clinicians before receiving the proper diagnosis. This means they carry additional disease burden, which is important to note.

Mixed features are a common problem, noted Alva, with a third of patients with bipolar disorder experiencing them.

"We certainly have a ripe population for appropriate intervention that may not have actually received that attention up to this point," concluded Alva.

Dr Alva is a board-certified psychiatrist, a paid consultant of Otsuka America Pharmaceutical, Inc, and Lundbeck, and Mood Disorders Section Editor for Psychiatric Times.