Bipolar disorder has the highest rates of alcohol and other substance use disorders among all the entities that constitute the severe mental illness category. Different epidemiological studies have shown a lifetime prevalence of between 30 to even more than 50% of alcohol use disorder in the bipolar spectrum category. It is still unclear the reasons for such an alarming comorbidity but different studies emphasize the adverse outcomes of this association with an increase in suicide attempts, low adherence to treatment, poorer functioning, more severe health problems and effects in the trajectory of the bipolar disorder. Despite the existence of FDA-approved pharmacological interventions and evidence based psychotherapeutic modalities for alcohol use disorder, only a minority of this population gets any treatment. 

Format

Recorded webinar, non-interactive, self-paced distance learning activity with post-test.

This presentation was recorded on July 23, 2021.

Learning Objectives

• Describe the epidemiology and strength of association of concurrent bipolar and alcohol use disorders. 
• Summarize the clinical outcomes when such comorbidity is present. 
• Discuss the different FDA-approved pharmacological and psychotherapeutic treatments for the management of alcohol use disorder, and how to combine them with the treatment of bipolar disorder. 

Outline

• Review of epidemiological data on concurrent bipolar and alcohol use disorders 
• Review of clinical consequences of association between bipolar and alcohol use disorders 
• Examine the conceptualization of BD-AUD comorbidity 
• Review treatment options, with focus on racial/ethnic  minorities  
• Presenter Q&A 

Target Audience

Counselor, Nurse/Nurse Practitioner, Pharmacist, Physician (Non-psychiatrist), Physician Assistant, Psychiatrist, Psychologist, Social Worker 

Instructional Level

Intermediate

Estimate Time to Complete

Estimated Duration: 1.0 hour 
Program Start Date: July 30, 2021  
Program End Date: July 30, 2024

Ongoing Interdisciplinary Discussion Board

After completing the course, engage with colleagues in the mental health field through SMI Adviser's Webinar Roundtable Topics discussion board. This is an easy way to network and share ideas with other clinicians who participate in this webinar. Access through the discussion tab.

How to Earn Credit

Participants who wish to earn AMA PRA Category 1 Credit™, nursing continuing professional development contact hours (NCPD, formerly CNE), CE credit for psychologists, CE credit for social workers, or a certificate of participation may do so by viewing the live presentation and completing the evaluation. Participants claiming CE credit for psychologists and those claiming CE credit for Social workers, must have full attendance to claim credit. After evaluating the program, course participants will be provided with an opportunity to claim hours of participation and print an official CME certificate (physicians), NCPD (nurses), CE certificate (psychologists), CE certificate (social workers) or certificate of participation (other disciplines) showing the event date and hours earned.  

Continuing Education Credit

Physicians

The American Psychiatric Association (APA) is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) to provide continuing medical education for physicians. 

The APA designates this live event for a maximum of 1.0 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. 

Psychologists

The American Psychiatric Association is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. American Psychiatric Association maintains responsibility for this program and its content. 

Nurses/Nurse Practitioners

The American Psychiatric Nurses Association is accredited as a provider of nursing continuing professional development by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation. 

Social Workers 

American Psychiatric Association, provider #1743, is approved to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Organizations, not individual courses, are approved as ACE providers. State and provincial regulatory boards have the final authority to determine whether an individual course may be accepted for continuing education credit. American Psychiatric Association maintains responsibility for this course.  

ACE provider approval periods: 05/18/2020 - 05/18/2021 and 05/18/2021 - 05/18/2024.  

Social workers completing this course receive 1.0 continuing education credits. 

Faculty and Planner Disclosures

All financial relationships relevant to this activity have been mitigated.

Instructor

• Javier Ballester Gonzalez, MD, Assistant Professor (Clinical), earned his medical degree at Universidad Autonoma de Madrid in Spain. He completed his first residency in Psychiatry at Hospital Universitario Doce de Octubrede Madrid, where he also concluded a one-year research fellowship. Upon being awarded a 2-year Koplowitz Fellowship to study Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, he moved to the USA (Pittsburgh, PA). He completed his second Psychiatry Residency at Yale University, where he recently also finished an Addiction Psychiatry Fellowship. Dr. Ballester is board certified in Psychiatry and in Addiction Psychiatry by the ABPN and in Addiction Medicine by the ABPM. His current interests include research in neurobiological mechanisms of substance use disorders, mood disorders, education, and psychiatry services to minority populations (Hispanic/Latino and LGBT populations). Dr. Ballester currently serves as adjunct assistant professor of adult psychiatry at the University of Utah School of Medicine. Dr Ballester reports no financial relationships with commercial interests. 

Planners

• Teri Brister, PhD, LPC, National Alliance on Mental Illness. Reports no financial relationships with commercial interests.
• Amy N. Cohen, PhD, American Psychiatric Association. Reports no financial relationships with commercial interests.
• Tristan Gorrindo, MD, American Psychiatric Association. Reports no financial relationships with commercial interests.
• Sherin Khan, LCSW, Thresholds. Reports no financial relationships with commercial interests.
• Donna Rolin, PhD, APRN, University of Texas at Austin. Reports no financial relationships with commercial interests.  

Accessibility for Participants with Disabilities

The American Psychiatric Association is committed to ensuring accessibility of its website to people with disabilities. If you have trouble accessing any of APA’s online resources, please contact us at 202-559-3900 for assistance.

Technical Requirements

This internet-based CME activity is best experienced using any of the following:

• The latest and 2nd latest public versions of Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, or Safari
• Internet Explorer 11+

This website requires that JavaScript and session cookies be enabled. Certain activities may require additional software to view multimedia, presentation, or printable versions of the content. These activities will be marked as such and will provide links to the required software. That software may be:  Adobe Acrobat Reader, Microsoft PowerPoint, and Windows Media Player.

Optimal System Configuration:

• Browser: Google Chrome (latest and 2nd latest version), Safari (latest and 2nd latest version), Internet Explorer 11.0+, Firefox (latest and 2nd latest version), or Microsoft Edge (latest and 2nd latest version)
• Operating System: Windows versions 8.1+, Mac OS X 10.5 (Leopard) +, Android (latest and 2nd latest version), or iOS/iPad OS (latest and 2nd latest version)
• Internet Connection: 1 Mbps or higher

Minimum Requirements:

• Windows PC: Windows 8.1 or higher; 1 GB (for 32-bit)/2 GB (for 64-bit) or higher RAM; Microsoft DirectX 9 graphics device with WDDM driver; audio playback with speakers for programs with video content
• Macintosh: Mac OS X 10.5 or higher with latest updates installed; Intel, PowerPC G5, or PowerPC G4 (867MHz or faster) processor; 512 MB or higher RAM; audio playback with speakers for programs with video content

For assistance: Contact educme@psych.org for questions about this activity | Contact SMIadviserhelp@psych.org for technical assistance