Prevalence of child sexual abuse among adults and youths with bipolar disorder: A systematic review

• Studies on child sexual abuse and bipolar disorder are reviewed for the first time.
• The prevalence of child sexual abuse among subjects with bipolar disorder is 24%.
• Child sexual abuse is a common experience for both bipolar males and females.
• Bipolar subjects report higher rates of child sexual abuse than healthy individuals.
• Causality between child sexual abuse and bipolar disorder cannot be determined.

To estimate the prevalence and social and demographic correlates of child sexual abuse among people with bipolar disorder, the findings of all the pertinent studies were qualitatively and semi-quantitatively analyzed. Five databases were searched. Blind assessments of study eligibility and quality were conducted by two independent researchers. Twenty studies, meeting minimum quality standards and including 3407 adults and youths with bipolar disorder across 10 countries and 3 continents, were examined. The prevalence of child sexual abuse was 24% (23% without outliers); however, such prevalence rate might be underestimated, because many studies restricted definitions to the most severe forms of abuse. Child sexual abuse was a common experience for both males and females, while it was more frequent for adults than for youths. Compared to healthy individuals, patients with bipolar disorder reported higher rates of child sexual abuse; compared to populations with other mental disorders, participants with bipolar disorder reported similar or lower rates of such abuse. Individuals with bipolar disorder are at risk of having a history of child sexual abuse, although such risk seems to be neither more specific to nor stronger for these individuals, compared to people with other psychiatric disorders.