Is There A Close Relationship Between The Bipolar Illness And Epilepsy?Surprisingly, a relationship has been established between the bipolar illness and epilepsy. Bipolar illness is a severe mental disorder which causes extreme mood fluctuations in people. They sway between alternate phases of mania and depression and hence the disorder is also known as the Â'Manic-depressive DisorderÂ'. Epilepsy on the other hand, is also characterized by recurrent seizures in the brain, but they are completely unprovoked. In this article we are discussing whether there is any link between the bipolar illness and epilepsy, genetics of the bipolar illness and how common medicines can be administered for both the diseases. The bipolar disorder usually occurs due to a combination of factors which may be genetic, biological and environmental. Interestingly, genetic factors are also behind disorders such as epilepsy and schizophrenia. And so, there might be a link between bipolar illness and epilepsy. It certainly seems that way. Bipolar illness and epilepsy share the same biological mechanisms and when it comes to the medications, the same anti-seizure drugs work for both of them. There is a deep rooted relationship between both of these diseases. The connection between the bipolar illness and epilepsy go down to the genes. Many studies have been conducted and they show that the bipolar illness is caused by genetic factors along with other causes. When there is an identical twin and one of them has the disorder, the chances of the other developing it is 85% to 89%. In such cases, the twins not only share common environments but common genes as well. Biochemical imbalances of hormones causes the various symptoms of this disorder and these may as well be genetic in nature. Epilepsy is also known to run in the family with strong genetic influences and till 2006, as many as twelve epilepsy genes have been identified. The genetic bipolar illness looks very like epilepsy. The similarity between bipolar illness and epilepsy is so much that even the same medicines can be administered for both. There are some medicines like sodium valproate, lamictal and carbamazepine which are used to treat both the bipolar disease and epilepsy. Certain common patterns are also present like the more intense mood swings people face in the early stages of bipolar illness. The more its intensity, the more the frequency, not unlike epilepsy. Simple Partial Seizures (SPS) experienced in Temporal Lobe Epilepsy have similar features to the manic phases of the bipolar disease. Such as the feelings of euphoria and hallucination. From the above discussion a clear pattern emerges, and that is of a relation between bipolar illness and epilepsy. Which part of the genes is similar for both? Further studies in the future will only prove whether they are separate disorders or in fact variations of the same disorder. |