Abstract
Background and purpose: This study aimed to establish the treated prevalence of Bipolar Disorder (BD) in serving members of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) in light of a 2018 study of mental disorders in the ADF and Veteran population that found a surprisingly high 12-month prevalence rate. Method: A retrospective review of the Defence electronic Health System (DeHS) was conducted for the periods 2015-16 and 2016-17 of all eligible Defence personnel. Two psychiatrists then reviewed each record with an entry for BD to confirm whether a clinical diagnosis was present with measures to optimise inter-rater reliability. Results: 138 431 DeHS clinical records were searched, and 36 potential cases of BD were identified in the financial year 2015-16, of which 21 were confirmed to have a diagnosis of BD. Thirty-two potential cases of BD were found in the financial year (FY) 2016-17, of which 24 were confirmed to have a diagnosis of BD. The average 12-month prevalence of BD across FY 2015-16 and FY 2016-17 was 0.03% or 2.51 per 10 000. Conclusion: The prevalence of BD in serving members was considerably lower than in the 2018 study. Possible explanations for this finding are examined.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 13-21 |
| Number of pages | 9 |
| Journal | Journal of Military and Veterans' Health |
| Volume | 31 |
| Issue number | 2 |
| Publication status | Published - Apr 2023 |
Bibliographical note
Copyright the Australian Military Medicine Association 2023. Version archived for private and non-commercial use with the permission of the author/s and according to publisher conditions. For further rights please contact the publisher.Keywords
- Bipolar Disorder (BD)
- military
- prevalence