Sex difference in the progression of manic symptoms during acute hospitalization: A prospective pilot study

Objectives Acute mania is a serious medical condition that impacts men and women equally. Longtime presentation of manic symptoms is sex‐dependent; however, little is known about acute symptoms of mania. The objective of this study is to track and compare acute manic symptoms for sex differences during inpatient hospitalization. Methods All patients with bipolar mania admitted to a large university hospital between January and October 2017 were invited to participate in this longitudinal naturalistic follow‐up study. Manic (YMRS), depressive (MADRS), and psychotic (PAS) symptoms were tracked daily from admission to discharge. Results The total YMRS scores decreased significantly overtime (p
The progression of certain domains of manic symptoms shows sex difference. Female manic patients had better insight into their illness compared to manic males who exhibited more sexual interest, disruptive, and aggressive behaviors, but better appearance. Both males and females received comparable doses of antipsychotics and lithium. Valproic acid (VPA) doses were significantly higher in males compared to females. However, VPA plasma concentrations were not significantly different between the two groups.