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Hypnotic susceptibility and affective states in bipolar I and II disorders.

Bingren Zhang, Jiawei Wang, Qisha Zhu, Guorong Ma, Chanchan Shen, Hongying Fan, Wei Wang

BMC Psychiatry November 9, 2017 DOI: 10.1186/s12888-017-1529-2 (opens in new tab)

Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Cross-sectional observational study Peer reviewed
Sample size 215
Population 62 patients with bipolar I disorder, 33 with bipolar II disorder, and 120 healthy volunteers
Measures Stanford Hypnotic Susceptibility Scale: Form C (SHSS:C), Mood Disorder Questionnaire (MDQ), Hypomanic Checklist-32 (HCL-32), Plutchick-van Praag Depression Inventory (PVP)
Topics Depression
Keywords Humans Hallucinations Hypnosis Mood disorders Bipolar disorder Cyclothymic disorder Adolescent Female Young adult Checklist Surveys and questionnaires Hypomania Hypnotic susceptibility
Key findings Bipolar I patients passed the motor suggestion 'Moving hands apart' more often than controls but passed the cognitive suggestion 'Mosquito hallucination' less often. Both bipolar groups scored higher than controls on mania and depression scales. Passing rates on certain hypnotic items predicted mania questionnaire scores in controls and in each bipolar group.

Abstract

Background: Highly hypnotizable individuals have impaired executive function, elevated motor impulsivity and increased emotional sensitivity, which are sometimes found in bipolar disorder patients. It is then reasonable to assume that certain aspects of hypnotic susceptibility differ with the types of bipolar disorder.

Methods: The Stanford Hypnotic Susceptibility Scale: Form C (SHSS:C) test, the Mood Disorder Questionnaire (MDQ), the Hypomanic Checklist-32 (HCL-32) and the Plutchick-van Praag Depression Inventory (PVP) were applied to 62 patients with bipolar I disorder, 33 bipolar II disorder, and 120 healthy volunteers.

Results: The passing rate of the SHSS:C 'Moving hands apart' item was higher in bipolar I patients than in controls, whereas for 'Mosquito hallucination' the rate was lower. Bipolar I and II patients scored significantly higher on MDQ, HCL-32 and PVP scales than controls. The passing rates of 'Mosquito hallucination' in controls, 'Arm rigidity' in bipolar I, and 'Age regression' in bipolar II predicted the respective MDQ scores.

Conclusion: In contrast to cognitive suggestions, bipolar I patients followed motor suggestions more often under hypnosis. Furthermore, both bipolar disorder patients and healthy volunteers demonstrated associations between mania levels and certain hypnotic susceptibility features. Our study aids in better understanding the altered conscious states in bipolar disorders, and encourages the use of related psychotherapy for these patients.

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