Premorbid Signs and Symptoms of Mood Disorders among a Sample of Iranian Population

By early detection and performing preventive interventions, it would be possible to significantly prevent side effects and burden of mood disorders. This study aimed to investigate the premorbid signs and symptoms of major mood disorders in a sample of Iranian patients.
All the patients hospitalized due to mood disorders in Noor hospital in Isfahan City, Iran, were interviewed to investigate past history of any psychiatric sign and symptom retrospectively using convenience sampling method. Independent sample t and chi-square tests were used to analyze the data.
Findings: From 175 patients (66 men and 109 women) with the mean age of 34.7 ± 12.1 years, 119 participants were diagnosed as bipolar mood disorder (BMD) and 56 as major depressive disorder (MDD). All the patients (except 1 with major depressive disorder) had at least 1 premorbid sign or symptom. Impulsivity (32.8%), irritability (29.4%), and over-sociality (26.1%) were the most frequent premorbid sign/symptom in the past history of the patients with bipolar mood disorder; impulsivity and irritability significantly increased the risk of the future bipolar mood disorder. Poor coping (78.6%), social isolation (33.9%), and anxiety (30.4%) were the most frequent premorbid sign/symptom among the patients with major depressive disorder; only poor coping significantly increased the risk of the future major depressive disorder.
Considering the high prevalence of premorbid signs and symptoms among Iranian patients with major mood disorders, more attention should be paid to them during childhood and adolescence periods to make early diagnosis and shorten the untreated phase of these disorders.