A study published last week entitled “Comparative efficacy and acceptability of antimanic drugs in acute mania: a multiple-treatments meta-analysis” (Cipriani et al The Lancet 17 Aug 2011) reviewed many previous trials of medications for mania. It looked at results for any of the following medications: Aripiprazole (Abilify) , asenapine (Saphris), carbamazepine (Tegretol) , valproate (Depakote) , gabapentin (Neurontin), haloperidol (Haldol), Lamotrigine (Lamictal), lithium, Olanzapine (Zyprexa), quetiapine (Seroquel), risperidone (Risperdal) , topiramate (Topamax), and Ziprasidone (Geodon).

If you’re taking a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (an SSRI antidepressant) that doesn’t seem to be working very well and you take nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as ibuprofen, to relieve pain, that NSAID may be the reason why your SSRI isn’t working.

Recently Paul Greengard PhD published a report in an online journal that strongly suggests that treatment with NSAIDs may reduce the antidepressant activity of SSRIs. Their research is based on the theory that depression is at least partially related to the body’s inflammatory responses. This is called the cytokine hypothesis and is based on observations that some chemicals released as part of inflammation – cytokines – are involved in regulating neurotransmitters such as serotonin.

Abilify (aripiprazole) is an atypical antipsychotic medication commonly used to treat schizophrenia and acute mania. In 2005, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved its use in the maintenance treatment of bipolar disorder – to prevent the recurrence of mood episodes. Unfortunately, evidence proving the effectiveness of Abilify as a maintenance medication for bipolar disorder is scarce and questionable.

Exposing the Truth

An article published this week in the open access journal PLoS Medicine (Tsai et al) looks critically at the scientific evidence that supports such widespread use of this medicine for maintenance treatment of bipolar disorder.

Syndicated from the Bipolar Blog

Whenever you have a change in medications or therapies, your moods will improve, worsen, or stay about the same. Documenting how you feel can be a valuable tool in helping you team up with your doctor and therapist to obtain the right combination of medications and therapy. Use the following form to record the most recent change in your treatment plan and in how you feel since the change. (Or download the form as a Word Document.)