Rationale: There are very few data as to the social and occupational adaptation of patients with bipolar disorder in Spain and even less is known about the resource use they generate.
Objective: To determine the functional status and healthcare resource use of the Spanish sample of the pan European EMBLEM (European Mania in Bipolar Longotudinal Evaluation of Medication) study of bipolar patients in manic or mixed phase.
Method: The EMBLEM study recruited 3536 patients, 312 of whom (8.82%) were enrolled in Spain. Patients had to be adults with a diagnosis of bipolar disorder who were initiating at the discretion of their treating psychiatrist oral treatment for an acute manic phase. They were evaluated using the Spanish versions of rating scales for the severity of mania (Young Mania Rating Scale), bipolar disorder (CGI BD) for mania, depression and hallucinations delusions, and depression (HAMD 5 item version of the Hamilton Scale); the Life Chart Method (LCM) and 2 items of the SLICE of LIFE were used to evaluate functioning. Information was collected on healthcare resource utilization during the preceding year.
Results: Sixty three percent of the patients presented with moderate to very severe work related difficulties in the year preceding his her manic episode. Forty percent of the patients failed to comply either totally or partly with their prescribed treatment. Subjects required an average of 1.5 hospitalizations during the year prior to enrollment, with a mean stay of approximately 10 days, and between 7 and 8 outpatient visits per year.