Evaluation of Bipolar Disorder in Inpatients With Prelingual Deafness

OBJECTIVE: This study retrospectively examined the occurrence of bipolar disorder in patients with prelingual deafness who were hospitalized for a psychiatric disorder. METHOD: The hospital charts since 1983 of all psychiatrically admitted deaf patients were retrospectively evaluated for diagnoses by using DSM-IV criteria. Those with a best-estimate diagnosis of bipolar disorder were compared to those with other diagnoses. RESULTS: There were 28 patients with prelingual deafness who had at least one psychiatric diagnosis from 1983 to 1998. Upon chart review, 11 (39.3%) were diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Patients with bipolar disorder and deafness had rates of inaccurate discharge diagnoses that were similar to those of other deaf patients (70.8% versus 56.7%). CONCLUSIONS: Bipolar disorder may be more common in inpatients with prelingual deafness than has been previously described in the literature. Further research regarding the sources contributing to mis­diagnosis of psychiatric disorders in this population is warranted.