In general, bipolar disorder in children was not recognized in the first half of the twentieth century. This issue diminished with an increased following of the DSM criteria in the last part of the twentieth century. The diagnosis of childhood bipolar disorder, while formerly controversial, has gained greater acceptance among childhood and adolescent psychiatrists. American children and adolescents diagnosed with bipolar disorder in community hospitals increased 4-fold reaching rates of up to 40% in 10 years around the beginning of the 21st century, while in outpatient clinics it doubled reaching 6%. Studies using DSM criteria show that up to 1% of youth may have bipolar disorder. The DSM-5 has established a diagnosis—disruptive mood dysregulation disorder—that covers children with long-term, persistent irritability that had at times been misdiagnosed as having bipolar disorder, distinct from irritability in bipolar disorder that is restricted to discrete mood episodes. Elderly
Bipolar disorder is uncommon in older patients, with a measured lifetime prevalence of 1% in over 60s and a 12-month prevalence of 0.1–0.5% in people over 65. Despite this, it is overrepresented in psychiatric admissions, making up 4–8% of inpatient admission to aged care psychiatry units, and the incidence of mood disorders is increasing overall with the aging population. Depressive episodes more commonly present with sleep disturbance, fatigue, hopelessness about the future, slowed thinking, and poor concentration and memory; the last three symptoms are seen in what is known as pseudodementia.
Treatment
Avoidance and Hearing Protection
Setback prevention and reduction of pain symptoms are high priorities among those with hyperacusis and noxacusis, which is often managed through a combination of controlling the environment so as to avoid loud sounds, soundproofing, and wearing hearing protection, such as earplugs and/or safety earmuffs, such as the type used at firing ranges or industrial applications

Diet
Diet may play a role in symptom management in some cases of hyperacusis, with response to a migraine diet, low-histamine diet, or low sodium diet. Sound Therapy
Sound therapy is sometimes recommended for those with hyperacusis, though its application among those with pain (noxacusis) should be used with caution. Tinnitus retraining therapy, a treatment originally used to treat tinnitus, uses broadband noise to treat hyperacusis. Pink noise can also be used to treat hyperacusis. By listening to broadband noise at soft levels for a disciplined period of time each day, some patients can rebuild (i.e., re-establish) their tolerances to sound. More research is needed on the efficacy of sound therapy techniques when hyperacusis is the primary complaint, rather than a secondary symptom, indicating that "no strong conclusions can be made" about its efficacy at this time. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy
Another possible treatment is cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), which may also be combined with sound therapy. However, randomized controlled trials with active control groups are still needed to establish the effectiveness of CBT for hyperacusis and the usefulness of CBT for noxacusis (pain hyperacusis) is not yet demonstrated in the scientific literature.