Lithium and the Anticonvulsants in Bipolar Disorder

Joseph R. Calabrese1 and Charles Bowden2

1Director, Mood Disorders Program
Vice Chair, Clinical Affairs
Professor of Psychiatry
Case Western Reserve School of Medicine
11400 Euclid Avenue, Suite #200
Cleveland, Ohio 44116
Phone: 216/721-5000
Fax: 216/721-9116

2Chairman, Department of Psychiatry
Nancy U. Karren Professor
University of Texas Health Science Center
Department of Psychiatry
7703 Floyd Curl Drive
San Antonio, Texas 78284-7792
Phone: 210/567-5396
Fax: 210/567-6941



REFERENCES

1. American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition. Washington, D.C. American Psychiatric Association, 1994.

2. Baastrup PC, Poulsen JC, Schou M, et al: Prophylactic lithium: Double-blind discontinuation in manic-depressive and recurrent-depressive disorders. Lancet 1970;2:326-330.

3. Baldessarini RJ, Tondo L, Faedda GL, Suppes TR, Floris G, Rudas N: Effects of the rate of discontinuing lithium maintenance treatment in bipolar disorders. J Clin Psychiatry 1996;57:441-448.

4. Ballenger JC. The use of anticonvulsants in manic-depressive illness. J Clin Psychiatry 1988;49[11, Suppl]:21-24.

5. Ballenger JC, Post RM: Therapeutic effects of carbamazepine in affective illness: a preliminary report. Communications in Psychopharmacology 1978;2:159-175.

6. Ballenger JC, Post RM. Carbamazepine in manic-depressive illness: a new treatment. Am J Psychiatr 1980;137:782-790.

7. Bauer MS, Calabrese JR, Dunner DL, Post RP, Whybrow PC, Gyulai L, Tay LK, et al: Multi-site data reanalysis: Validity of rapid cycling as a course modifier for bipolar disorder in DSM-IV. Am J Psychiatry. 1994;151:506-515.

8. Bowden CL, Brugger, AM, Swann AC, Calabrese JR, Janicak PG, Petty F, Dilsaver SC, Davis JM, Rush J, Small JG, Garza-Trevino ES, Risch, SC, Goodnick PJ, Morris DD: Efficacy of divalproex sodium vs. lithium and placebo in the treatment of mania. JAMA. 1994;271:12:918-924.

9. Bowden C, Swann A, Calabrese JR, McElroy S, Morris D, Petty F, Hirschfeld R, Gyulai L: Maintenance clinical trials in bipolar disorder: Design implications of the divalproex-lithium placebo study. Psychopharmacology Bulletin 1997;33:693-699.

10. Brennan MJW, Sandyk R, Borsook D: Use of sodium VPA in the management of affective disorders: Basic and clinical aspects. In Anticonvulsants in Affective Disorders. Edited by Emrich HM, Okuma T, Muller AA. Amersterdam, Excerpta Medica, 1984.

11. Brown D, Silverstone T, Cookson J. Carbamazepine compared to haloperidol in acute mania. Int Clin Psychoparmacol 1989;4:229-238.

12. Calabrese JR, Gulledge AD, Hahn K, Skwerer RG, Gupta MK, Schumacher OP, Gold PW: Autoimmune thyroiditis in lithium-treated manic depression. Am J Psychiatry 1985;142:1318-1321.

13. Calabrese JR, Delucchi GA: Spectrum of efficacy of VPA in 55 rapid-cycling manic depressives. Am J Psychiatry 1990;147:431-434.

14. Calabrese JR, Woyshville MJ, Kimmel SE, Rapport DJ: Mixed states and bipolar rapid cycling and their treatment with VPA. Psychiatric Annals 1993;23:70-78 a.

15. Calabrese JR, Woyshville MJ, Kimmel SE, Rapport DJ: Predictors of valproate response in bipolar rapid cycling. J. Clin. Psychopharmacology 1993;13:280-283 b.

16. Calabrese JR, Rapport DJ, Shelton MD, Kimmel SE: Clinical studies on the use of lamotrigine in bipolar disorder. Neuropsychobiology. 1998;38:185-191.

17. Calabrese JR, Bowden CL, McElroy SL, Cookson J, Andersen J, Rhodes L, Keck PE, Bolden-Watson C, Zhou J, Ascher J: Spectrum of activity of lamotrigine in treatment refractory bipolar disorder. Am J Psychiatry In press (a).

18. Calabrese JR, Bowden CL, Sachs GS, Ascher JA, Monaghan E, Rudd GD for the Lamictal 602 Study Group: A double-blind placebo-controlled study of lamotrigine monotherapy in outpatients with bipolar I depression. J Clin Psychiatry In Press (b).

19. Coryell W, Endicott J, Keller M: Rapid cycling affective disorder: Demographics, diagnosis, family, and course. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1992;49:126-131.

20. Coryell W, Winokur G, Solomon D, Shea T, Leon A, Keller M: Lithium and recurrence in a long-term follow-up of bipolar affective disorder. Psychol Med 1997;27:281-289.

21. Coxhead N, Silverstone T, Cookson J. Carbamazepine versus lithium in the prophylaxis of bipolar affective disorder. Acta Psychiatry Scand 1992;85:114-118.

22. Davis JM: Overview of maintenance therapy in psychiatry II: Affective disorders. Am J Psychiatry 1976;133:1-13.

23. Denicoff KD, Smith-Jackson EE, Disney ER, Omar Ali S, Leverich GS, Post RM: Comparative prophylactic efficacy of lithium, carbamazepine, and the combination in bipolar disorder. J Clin Psychiatry 1997a;58:470-478.

24. Denicoff KD, Smith-Jackson EE, Bryan AL, Omar Ali S, Post RM: Valproate prophylaxis in a prospective clinical trial of refractory bipolar disorder Am J Psychiatry 1997b;154:1456-1458.

25. Desai NG, Gangadhas BN, Channabasavanna SM, et al. Carbamazepine hastens therapeutic action of lithium in mania. In: Proceedings of the International Conference on New Directions in Affective Disorders. Jerusalem, April 5-9, 1987:97. Abstract.

26. Dunner DL, Fieve RR: Clinical factors in LI carbonate prophylaxis failure. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1974;30:229-233.

27. Emrich HM, Dose M, von Serssen D: The use of sodium VPA and oxyCBZ in patients with affective disorders. J Affective Disorder 1985;8:243-250.

28. Faedda, GL, Tondo L, Baldessarini RJ, Suppes T, Tohen M: Outcome after rapid vs gradual discontinuation of lithium treatment in bipolar disorders. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1992;50:448-456.

29. Fawcett J, Scheftner A, Clark D, Hedeker D, Gibbons R, Coryell W: Clinical predictors of suicide in patients with major affective disorders: A controlled Prospective Study. Am J Psychiatry 1987;144:35-40.

30. Ferrier IN, Calabrese JR: Lamotrigine, gabapentin, and the new anticonvulsants: Efficacy in Mood Disorders. In. Schizophrenia and Mood Disorders: The New Drug Therapies in Clinical Practice. Eds P.f. Buckley, J.L. Waddington. Butterworth Heinenmann. In Press.

31. Fieve RR, Platman SR, Plutchik RR: The use of lithium in affective disorders I: Acute endogenous depression. Am J Psychiatry 1968;125:487-491.

32. Frances A, Docherty JP, Kahn DA: The expert consensus guideline series - Treatment of Bipolar Disorder. J Clinical Psychiatry. 1996;57:1-88.

33. Frankenburg FR, Tohen M, Cohen BM, Lipinski JF: Long-term response to carbamazepine: A retrospective study. J Clin Psychopharmacol. 1988;8:130-132

34. Freeman TW, Clothier JL, Passaglia P, Lesem MD, Swann AC: A double blind comparison of VPA and LI in the treatment of acute mania. Am J Psychiatry 1992;149:108-111.

35. Frye MA, Ketter TA, Osuch EA, Kimbrell TA, Speer AM, Dunn RM, Post RM: Gabapentin and lamotrigine monotherapy in mood disorders. In: Annual Meeting of the American Psychiatric Association, Toronto, Canada, Abstract 77D, page 150, 1998.

36. Gelenberg AJ, Kane JN, Keller MB, et al: Comparison of the standard and low serum levels of lithium for maintenance treatment of bipolar disorders. N Engl J Med 1989;321-1489-1493.

37. Gitlin MJ, Swendsen J, Heller TL, Hammen C: Relapse and impairment in bipolar disorder. Am J Psychiatry 1995;152:1635-1640.

38. Goodwin FK, Jamison KR: Manic-Depressive Illness, New York, Oxford University Press, Inc., 1990

39. Greil W, Kleindienst N, Erazo N, Muller-Oerlinghausen B: Differential response to lithium and carbamazepine in the prophylaxis of bipolar disorder. J Clin Psychopharmacology 1998;18:455-460.

40. Grof E, Haag M, Grof P, et al: Lithium response and the sequence of episode polarities: Preliminary report on a Hamilton sample. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 1987;11:199-203.

41. Grossi E, Sacchetti E, Vita A et al. Carbamazepine vs. chlorpromazine in mania: a double blind trial. In: Emrich HM, Okuma T, Muller AA, eds. Anticonvulsants in affective disorders. Amsterdam: Excerpta Medica, 1984;177-187.

42. Harrow M, Goldberg J F, Grossman L S, et al: Outcome in manic disorders: A naturalistic follow-up study. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1990;47:665-671.

43. Hayes SG: Longterm use of VPA in primary psychiatric disorders. J Clin Psychiatry 1989;50(3):35-39.

44. Herridge PL, Pope HG: Treatment of bulimia and rapid cycling bipolar disorder with sodium VPA: A case report. J Clin Psychopharmacol 1985;5:229-230.

45. Jacobson SJ, Jones K, Johnson K, Ceolin L, Kaur P, Sahn D, Donnenfeld AE, Rieder M, Santelli R, et al: Prospective multicentre study of pregnancy outcome after lithium exposure during first trimester. Lancet 1992;339:530-533.

46. Keller MB, Lavori PW, Kane JM, et al: Subsyndromal symptoms in bipolar disorder: a comparison of standard and low serum levels of lithium. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1992;49:371-376.

47. Klein E, Bental E, Lerer B, Belmaker RH. Carbamazepine and haloperidol v placebo and haloperidol in excited psychoses. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1984;41:165-170.

48. Klosiewicz L: [The prophylactic influence of valproic acide amide in affective illness]. Psychiatr Pol 19, NR 1985;1:23-29.

49. Kramlinger KG, Post RM. Adding lithium carbonate to carbamazepine: antimanic efficacy in treatment-resistant mania. Acta Psychiatr Scand 1989;79:378-385.

50. Kukopulos A, Reginaldi D, Laddomada P, Floric G, Serra G, Tondo L: Course of the manic depressive cycle and changes caused by treatment. Pharmacopsychiat 1980;13:156-167.

51. Kusumakar V, Yatham LN, Haslam DRS, Parikh SV, Matte R, Silverstone PH, Sharma V: Treatment of mania, mixed state, and rapid cycling. Can J Psychiatry 1997;42 Suppl 2:79S-86S.

52. Lambert PA: Acute and prophylactic therapies of patients with affective disorders using valpromide (Dipropylacetamide). In. Emrich HM, Okuma T, Muller AA (eds): Anticonvulsants in Affective Disorders, Excerpta Medica, Amsterdam 1984:33-44.

53. Lambert PA, Venaud G: [Comparative study of valpromide versus LI in treatment of affective disorders]. Nervure. 1992;5(2)57-65.

54. Langtry HD, Gillis JC, Davis R: Topiamate - A review of its pharmacodynamic and pharmacokinetic properties and clinical efficacy in the management of epilepsy. Drugs 1997;54(5)752-773.

55. Lenzi A, Lazzerine F, Grossi E, Massimetti G, Placidi GF. Use of carbamazepine in acute psychosis: a controlled study. J Int Med Res 1986;14:78-84.

56. Lerer B, Moore N, Meyendorff E, Cho S-R, Gershon S. Carbamazepine versus lithium in mania: a double-blind study. J Clin Psychiatr 1987;48:89-93.

57. Lovett L, Watkins SE, Shaw DM. The use of alternative drug therapy in nine patients with recurrent affective disorder resistant to conventional prophylaxis. Biol Psychiatr 1986;21:1344-1347.

58. Lusznat RM, Murphy DP, Nunn CMH. Carbamazepine vs lithium in the treatment and prophylaxis of mania. Brit J Psychiatr 1988;153:198-204.

59. Maj M, Pirozzi R, Magliano L, BartoliL: Long-term outcome of lithium prophylaxis in bipolar disorder: A 5-year prospective study of 402 patients at a lithium clinic. Am J Psychiatry 1998;155:30-5.

60. McElroy SL, Keck PE, Pope HG, Hudson JI: Valproate in the treatment of rapid cycling bipolar disorder. J Clin Psychopharmacol 1988;8:275-278.

61. McElroy SL, Keck PE, Stanton SP, Turgol KC, Bennett JA, Strakowski SM: A randomized comparison of divalproex oral loading versus haloperidol in the initial treatment of acute psychotic mania. J Clin Psychiatry 1996;57:142-146.

62. Miller AL, Bowden CL, Plewes J: Lithium and impairment of renal concentrating ability. J Affective Disorders 1985;9:115-119.

63. Moller H-J, Kissling W, Riehl T, Bauml J, Binz U, Wendt G. Double-blind evaluation of the antimanic properties of carbamazepine as a co-medication to haloperidol. Prog Neuro-Psychopharmacol Biol Psychiatr 1989;13:127-136.

64. Muller AA, Stoll K-D. Carbamazepine and oxcarbazepine in the treatment of manic syndromes - studies in Germany - In: Emrich HM, Okuma T, Muller AA, eds. Anticonvulsants in affective disorders. Amsterdam: Excerpta Medica 1984;139-147.

65. Muller-Oerlinghausen B, Retzow A, for the European Valproate Acute Mania Study Group: Valproate as an adjunct to neuroleptic medication in the treatment of acute episodes of mania. Presented at the 1998 Annual Meeting of the International Academy of Biomedical and Drug Research, Workshop on Novel Therapeutic Strategies in the Schizophrenic Spectrum and Mood Disorders. Venice, Italy.

66. Nilsson A, Axelsson R: Lithium discontinuation. I. Clinical characteristics and outcome. Acta Psychiatr Scand 1990;82(6):433-438.

67. Okuma T, Inanaga K, Otsuki S, et al. Comparison of the antimanic efficacy of carbamazepine and chlorpromazine: a double-blind controlled study. Psychopharmacology 1979;66:211-217.

68. Okuma T, Inanaga K, Otsuki S et al. A preliminary double-blind study on the efficacy of carbamazepine in prophylaxis of manic-depressive illness. Psychopharmacology 1981;73:95-96.

69. Okuma T: Therapeutic and prophylactic effects of carbamazepine in bipolar disorders. Psychiatric Clinics of North America 1983;6:147-174.

70. Okuma T, Yamashita I, Takahashi R, et al. Comparison of the antimanic efficacy of carbamazepine and lithium carbonate by double-blind controlled study. Pharmacopsychiatry 1990;23:143-150.

71. Physicians Desk Reference. Prescribing information for Lamictal. 1997. Medical Economics Data Production Co., Montvale, NJ.

72. Placidi GF, Lenzi A, Lazzerini F, Cassano GB, Akiskal HS. The comparative efficacy and safety of carbamazepine versus lithium: a randomized, double-blind 3-year trial in 83 patients. J Clin Psychiatr 1986;47:490-494.

73. Pope HG, Mc Elroy SL, Keck P, Brown S: Valproate in the treatment of acute mania: A Placebo controlled study. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1991;48:62-68.

74. Post RM, Uhde TW, Ballenger JC, Squillace KM. Prophylactic efficacy of carbamazepine in manic-depressive illness. Am J Psychiatr 1983;140:1602-1604.

75. Post RM, Berrettini W, Uhde T, Kellner C: Selective response to the anticonvulsant CBZ in manic depressive illness: A case study. J Clin Psychopharmacol 1984;4:178-185.

76. Post RM, Uhde TW, Roy-Byrne PP, Joffe RT. Antidepressant effects of carbamazepine. Am J Psychiatr 1986;143:29-34.

77. Post RM, Uhde TW, Roy-Byrne PP, Joffe RT. Correlates of antimanic response to carbamazepine. Psychiatr Res 1987;21:71-83.

78. Post RM, Rubinow DR, Uhde TW, et al. Dysphoric mania: clinical and biological correlates. Arch Gen Psychiatr 1989;46:353-358.

79. Post RM, Leverich GS, Rosoff AS, Altshuler LL: Carbamazepine prophylaxis in refractory affective disorders: A focus on longterm follow-up. J Clin Psychopharmacol 1990;10:318-327.

80. Post RM, Denicoff KD, Leverich G, et al: Drug-induced switching in bipolar disorder: Epidemiology and therapeutic implications. CNS Drugs 1997;8:352-365.

81. Puzynski S, Klosiewicz L: Valproic acid amide in the treatment of affective and schizoaffective disorders. J Affective Disord 1984;6:115-121.

82. Schachter SC, Leppik E, Matsuo F, Messenheimer JA, Faught E, Moore EL, Risner ME: Lamotrigine: A six month, placebo-controlled, safety and tolerance study. J Epilepsy 1995:8:201-209.

83. Schou M. Effects of long-term lithium treatment on kidney function: an overview. J Psychiat Res 1988;22:287-296.

84. Semadeni GW: [Study of the clinical efficacy of dipropylacetamide in mood disorders]. Acta Psychiatr Belg 1967;76:458-466.

85. Small JG, Klapper MH, Kellams JJ, Miller MJ, Milstein V, Sharpley PH, Small IF: Electroconvulsive treatment compared with lithium in management of manic states. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1988;45:727.

86. Small JG, Klapper MH, Milstein V, Kellams JJ, Miller MJ, Marhenke JD, Small IF: Carbamazepine compared with LI in the treatment of mania. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1991;48:915-921.

87. Sovner R: The use of VPA in the treatment of mentally retarded persons with typical and atypical bipolar disorders. J Clin Psychiatry 1989;50(3):40-43.

88. Stancer HC, Forbath N: Hyperparathyroidism hypothyroidism and impaired renal function after 10 to 20 years of lithium treatment. Arch Intern Med 1989;149:1042-1045.

89. Stoll KD, Bisson HE, Fischer E, et al. Carbamazepine versus haloperidol in manic syndromes- first report of a multicentric study in Germany. In: C Shagass et al, eds. Biological psychiatry 1985: proceedings of the IVth World Congress of Biological Psychiatry held from September 8th through 13th, 1985 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. New York: Elsevier, 1986;332-334.

90. Stromgren LS, Boller S. Carbamazepine in treatment and prophylaxis of manic-depressive disorder. Psychiatric Developments 1985;4:349-367.

91. Suppes T, Baldessarini RJ, Faedda GL, Tohen M: Risk of recurrence following discontinuation of LI treatment in bipolar disorder. Arch Gen Psychiatry 1991;48:1082-1088.

92. Swann AC, Bowden CL, Morris D, Calabrese JR, Petty F, Small J, Dilsaver SC, Davis JM: Depression during mania: Effect on response to lithium or divalproex. Archives of General Psychiatry 1997;54:37-42.

93. Tohen M, Waternaux CM, Tsuang MT, Hunt AT: Four year follow-up of twenty four first-episode manic patients. J Affective Disord 1990;19:79-86.

94. Tohen M, Sanger TM, McElroy SL et al: Olanzapine versus placebo in the treatment of acute mania. Presented at the 38th Annual New Clinical Drug Evaluation Unit Meeting, Boca Raton, Florida, June 10-13, 1998.

95. Takezaki H, Hanaoka M. [The use of carbamazepine (Tegretol) in the control of manic-depressive psychosis and other manic, depressive states]. Seishin-igaku (Clin Psychiatr) 1971;13:173-183.

96. Vencovsky E, Peteriva E, Kabes J: [Preventive effect of dipropylacetamide in bipolar manic depressive psychoses]. Psychiatr-Neurol-MedPsychol (Leipz). 1987;39(6),362-4.

97. Vestergaard P, Aagaard J: Five-year mortality in lithium-treated manic-depressive patients. J Affective Disor 1991;21:33-38.

98. Vestergaard P, Licht RW, Brodersen A et al: Outcome of lithium prophylaxis: a prospective follow-up of affective disorder patients assigned to high and low serum lithium levels. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica. 1998;98:310-315.

99. Watkins SE, Callender K, Thomas DR, Tidmarsh SF, Shaw DM. The effect of carbamazepine and lithium on remission from affective illness. Brit J Psychiatr 1987;150:180-182.

100. Zalstein E, Koren G, Einarson T and Freedom R M: A case-control study on the association between first trimester exposure to lithium and Ebstein's anomaly. Am J Cardiol 1990;65:817-818.

101. Zapletalek M, Hanus H, Kindernayova H: [Experiences with the prophylactic action of dipropylacetaminde]. Ceskoslovenska Psychiatrie 1988;84:7-10.


Back to Chapter

published 2000