Borderline Personality Disorder in Older adults / Seniors

Key things to know What the evidence shows
How common is it? Not established BPD-specific global estimate
Is it more common among older adults / seniors? Prevalence tends to decline with age
Are older adults / seniors at higher risk? Lower prevalence with increasing age
How much higher is the risk? NE
How often can it be missed? High; clinicians may assume personality pathology disappears with age
Does it show up differently among older adults / seniors? Somewhat
How might it look different? Impulsivity may diminish while interpersonal sensitivity, affective symptoms and chronic emptiness can persist
What commonly occurs alongside it? Depression; anxiety; medical illness
What can it be confused with? Depression; bipolar disorder; dementia/cognitive disorder; PTSD
Common screening tool MSI-BPD with clinical assessment
Separate screening tool for older adults / seniors None
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