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Cognitive function and lifetime features of depression and bipolar disorder in a large population sample: Cross-sectional study of 143,828 UK Biobank participants

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 October 2015

B. Cullen ,
B.I. Nicholl ,
D.F. Mackay ,
D. Martin ,
Z. Ul-Haq ,
A. McIntosh ,
J. Gallacher ,
I.J. Deary ,
J.P. Pell  and
J.J. Evans
...Show all authors
B. Cullen*
Affiliation:
Mental Health and Wellbeing, Institute of Health and Wellbeing, University of Glasgow, Ground Floor, Office Block, Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, Glasgow, University of Glasgow, G51 4TFUK
B.I. Nicholl
Affiliation:
General Practice and Primary Care, Institute of Health and Wellbeing, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
D.F. Mackay
Affiliation:
Public Health, Institute of Health and Wellbeing, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
D. Martin
Affiliation:
Mental Health and Wellbeing, Institute of Health and Wellbeing, University of Glasgow, Ground Floor, Office Block, Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, Glasgow, University of Glasgow, G51 4TFUK
Z. Ul-Haq
Affiliation:
Public Health, Institute of Health and Wellbeing, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK Institute of Public Health and Social Sciences, Khyber Medical University, Peshawar, Pakistan
A. McIntosh
Affiliation:
Division of Psychiatry, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
J. Gallacher
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
I.J. Deary
Affiliation:
Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
J.P. Pell
Affiliation:
Public Health, Institute of Health and Wellbeing, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
J.J. Evans
Affiliation:
Mental Health and Wellbeing, Institute of Health and Wellbeing, University of Glasgow, Ground Floor, Office Block, Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, Glasgow, University of Glasgow, G51 4TFUK
D.J. Smith
Affiliation:
Mental Health and Wellbeing, Institute of Health and Wellbeing, University of Glasgow, Ground Floor, Office Block, Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, Glasgow, University of Glasgow, G51 4TFUK
*
⁎Corresponding author. E-mail address:Breda.Cullen@glasgow.ac.uk (B. Cullen).
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Abstract

Background

This study investigated differences in cognitive performance between middle-aged adults with and without a lifetime history of mood disorder features, adjusting for a range of potential confounders.

Methods

Cross-sectional analysis of baseline data from the UK Biobank cohort. Adults aged 40–69 (n = 143,828) were assessed using measures of reasoning, reaction time and memory. Self-reported data on lifetime features of major depression and bipolar disorder were used to construct groups for comparison against controls. Regression models examined the association between mood disorder classification and cognitive performance, adjusting for sociodemographic, lifestyle and clinical confounders.

Results

Inverse associations between lifetime history of bipolar or severe recurrent depression features and cognitive performance were attenuated or reversed after adjusting for confounders, including psychotropic medication use and current depressive symptoms. Participants with a lifetime history of single episode or moderate recurrent depression features outperformed controls to a small (but statistically significant) degree, independent of adjustment for confounders. There was a significant interaction between use of psychotropic medication and lifetime mood disorder features, with reduced cognitive performance observed in participants taking psychotropic medication.

Conclusions

In this general population sample of adults in middle age, lifetime features of recurrent depression or bipolar disorder were only associated with cognitive impairment within unadjusted analyses. These findings underscore the importance of adjusting for potential confounders when investigating mood disorder-related cognitive function.

Keywords

CognitionUnipolar depressionMania and bipolar disorderEpidemiologyUK Biobank
Type
Original article
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 30 , Issue 8 , November 2015 , pp. 950 - 958
Copyright
Copyright © European Psychiatric Association 2020

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