Borderline personality disorder and its association with bipolar spectrum and binge eating disorder in college students from South India

Background: Borderline personality disorder (BPD) usually emerges during adolescence and is associated with severe morbidity. Individuals with BPD are also vulnerable to develop eating disorders as well as mood disorders. Objective: To study the prevalence of borderline personality and its association with binge-eating and bipolar spectrum disorder in college students. Methods: A questionnaire based survey was conducted on a convenience sample of 500 college students (>18 years of age) in medical and engineering campus. Participants were screened on self-report measures including McLean Screening Instrument for BPD (MSI-BPD), Mood Disorder Questionnaire (MDQ) and Binge-Eating Disorder Screener (BEDS-7) for BPD, bipolar spectrum disorder (BSD) and binge-eating disorder (BED), respectively. Results: The prevalence of BPD was 76 (15.2%, 95% CI 12.3–18.6), BSD was 43 (8.6%, 95% CI 6.4–11.5) and BED was 48 (9.6%, 95% CI 7.2–12.6). There was a significantly higher proportion of BSD (OR 23.6, 95% CI 11.3–49.3) and BED (OR 3.4, 95% CI 1.8–6.5) among those with BPD than those without. Conclusions: BPD was found in 15% of adolescents and they have higher proportion of BED and BSD. Early identification may help in planning early intervention strategies to reduce associated morbidity.