Posted on 02/16/2011 6:39:24 PM PST by decimon
Philadelphia, PA, 16 February 2011 - Lithium, introduced in the late 1940's, was the first "wonder drug" in psychiatry. It was the first medication treatment for the manic and depressive episodes of bipolar disorder and it remains among one of the most effective treatments for this disorder.
In the past 15 years, as molecular mechanisms underlying the treatment of bipolar disorder began to emerge, basic research studies conducted in animals began to identify neuroprotective and perhaps neurotrophic effects of this important medication.
The identification of these molecular actions of lithium coincided with the discovery of regional brain volume deficits in imaging studies of people with bipolar disorder. In particular, a generation of research studies identified alterations, predominately reductions, in the size of brain regions involved in mood regulation. These studies also began to provide hints that some of the treatments for bipolar disorder would increase the volumes of these brain regions.
In a massive research effort published in Biological Psychiatry, eleven international research groups collaborated to pool brain imaging data from adults with bipolar disorder. This allowed them to perform a mega-analysis to evaluate the differences in brain structure between individuals with bipolar disorder and healthy comparison subjects.
They found that individuals with bipolar disorder had increased right lateral ventricular, left temporal lobe, and right putamen volumes. Individuals with bipolar disorder who were not taking lithium had a reduction in cerebral and hippocampal volumes compared with healthy comparison subjects. Importantly, however, bipolar patients taking lithium displayed significantly increased hippocampal and amygdala volume compared with patients not treated with lithium and healthy comparison subjects. Cerebral volume reduction was also significantly associated with illness duration in bipolar individuals.
"This important mega-analysis provides strong support for regional brain structural alterations associated with bipolar disorder, but also sends a signal of hope that treatments for this disorder may reduce some of these deficits," commented Dr. John Krystal, Editor of Biological Psychiatry.
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Notes to Editors:
The article is "Structural Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Bipolar Disorder: An International Collaborative Mega-Analysis of Individual Adult Patient Data" by Brian Hallahan, John Newell, Jair C. Soares, Paolo Brambilla, Stephen M. Strakowski, David E. Fleck, Tuula Kieseppä, Lori L. Altshuler, Alex Fornito, Gin S. Malhi, Andrew M. McIntosh, Deborah A. Yurgelun-Todd, Kevin S. Labar, Verinder Sharma, Glenda M. MacQueen, Robin M. Murray, and Colm McDonald. Please see the article for the authors' affiliations and disclosures of financial and conflicts of interest. The article appears in Biological Psychiatry, Volume 69, Number 4 (February 15, 2011), published by Elsevier.
John H. Krystal, M.D. is Chairman of the Department of Psychiatry at the Yale University School of Medicine and a research psychiatrist at the VA Connecticut Healthcare System. His disclosures of financial and conflicts of interests are available at http://journals.elsevierhealth.com/webfiles/images/journals/bps/Biological-Psychiatry-Editorial-Disclosures-7-22-10.pdf.
Full text of the article mentioned above is available upon request. Contact Chris J. Pfister at c.pfister@elsevier.com to obtain a copy or to schedule an interview.
About Biological Psychiatry
This international rapid-publication journal is the official journal of the Society of Biological Psychiatry. It covers a broad range of topics in psychiatric neuroscience and therapeutics. Both basic and clinical contributions are encouraged from all disciplines and research areas relevant to the pathophysiology and treatment of major neuropsychiatric disorders. Full-length reports of novel results, commentaries, case studies of unusual significance, and correspondence judged to be of high impact to the field are published, particularly those addressing genetic and environmental risk factors, neural circuitry and neurochemistry, and important new therapeutic approaches. Concise reviews and editorials that focus on topics of current research and interest are also published rapidly.
Biological Psychiatry (www.sobp.org/journal) is ranked 4th out of 117 Psychiatry titles and 13th out of 230 Neurosciences titles in the 2009 ISI Journal Citations Reports® published by Thomson Reuters. The 2009 Impact Factor score for Biological Psychiatry has increased to 8.926.
About Elsevier
Elsevier is a world-leading publisher of scientific, technical and medical information products and services. The company works in partnership with the global science and health communities to publish more than 2,000 journals, including The Lancet and Cell, and close to 20,000 book titles, including major reference works from Mosby and Saunders. Elsevier's online solutions include SciVerse ScienceDirect, SciVerse Scopus, Reaxys, MD Consult and Nursing Consult, which enhance the productivity of science and health professionals, and the SciVal suite and MEDai's Pinpoint Review, which help research and health care institutions deliver better outcomes more cost-effectively.
A global business headquartered in Amsterdam, Elsevier employs 7,000 people worldwide. The company is part of Reed Elsevier Group PLC, a world-leading publisher and information provider, which is jointly owned by Reed Elsevier PLC and Reed Elsevier NV. The ticker symbols are REN (Euronext Amsterdam), REL (London Stock Exchange), RUK and ENL (New York Stock Exchange).
Balancing act ping.
I have known a girl for nearly 20 years who suffers from bi-polar. In many ways she is an extraordinary girl. Besides being beautiful she has a lot of great features.
I was talking to her boyfriend many years ago. He said he loved her but it was rough being her boyfriend. “she would be sweet as could be then in an instant become mean”.
She was married and I wasn’t surprised that they got a divorce in less than 2 years.
So much potential and all of it wasted.
bfl
How does that make her any different from other women?
Bi-polar does seem to be more common in women. I have no idea why.
Because they are stupid enough to go to a shrink and let themselves be dosed with a toxic metal —lithium-that causes brain damage.
This particular girl was taking Xanax. I have heard it is habit forming but that is about all I know.
Lithium was first tested on healthy guinea pigs and it made them dull and lethargic...so then it was tested on healthy people...and it made them slow and lethargic.....so then somebody had the bright idea that it could cause somebody prone to manic episodes to become less manic and more dull and lethargic!
So much for the “cure” to a “chemical imbalance” which is presumed, not proven by science. As one doctor has argued. nobody is suffering from a “lithium deficiency”. Lithium is a very poisonous metal.....
The term “bi=polar” is meant to sound scientific like two brain hemispheres....but the two poles are “manic” and “depressive”...just repackaged an old diagnosis......to sell to the neuroticized masses....
Xanax was proven to be effective for only 6 weeks over the placebo during FDA trials—and it also is highly addictive....and the withdrawal symptom for Xanax is ANXIETY worse than the patient started with.....
I have a version of bipolar called hypomania/cyclothymia. Mine came with the mood swings but without the psychotic mania/despondent depression cycles. Was a beatch to live with until I took steps to modify my lifestyle to accommodate it.
I was eventually able to manage it without medication (huge amounts of exercise and an avoidance of things that trigger the mania like stimulants, certain people, parties, etc.).
Believe it or not, there are a lot more men and women who have this disorder than have been professionally diagnosed. In my experience, many bipolars who do not have psychotic episodes fly under the radar and actually avoid diagnosis.
I agree that there are many drugs over prescribed but I personally know a kid in which (I think it was Ritalin) worked a miracle.
He worked at a Summer resort. Everyone liked him but he was literally climbing the walls. One had to be around him only a few seconds to see something was wrong.
The fourth Summer he showed up and was totally normal. A guy told me he was prescribed Ritalin.
I used to get into some foul moods that would sometimes last for just hours. Where other guys would take their moods out on the world, I would isolate myself as much as possible.
Some guys will go to a gym to beat the hell out of punching bags for a while. One guy told me he would go out to the car to scream what he wouldn’t scream at the wife and kids.
Whatever works for you.
Dunno. Extra volume needn't mean increased ability.
I took lithium for a short while years ago...turned me into a zombie. Went from there to Tegretol and Depakote (much more effective but frankly dealing with the medication was worse than the disease itself).
I haven't taken medication for over 12 years and have not had a single manic episode since getting off. Very serious stuff though...going without medication takes a very real commitment to life style changes. Very little room for error.
BTW, many folks with this disorder are quite successful in their careers...it is not at all a kiss of death. Obviously, certain careers are better than others. Rock musician is probably out of the question (though many with this ailment are creative types).
As said, it takes some serious maturity to deal with it effectively.
I work out with a punching bag...great workout. I also cycle and lift weights.
My lyme disease specialist says bipolar is actually lyme disease. Lyme disease has all the same symptoms. Doctors don’t know much about lyme so they usually diagnose people with bipolar, RA, Lupus, MS, Parkinson’s, Gout, Fibromyalgia Chronic Fatigue, autism, Crohn’s,etc.... the list goes on and on. Lyme disease has overtaken AIDS, and no one ever talks about Lyme disease. Strange...
I have been told that ritalin, when crushed and snorted, has an effect similar to cocaine. Not an attractive attribute.
I did notice it was only people who were close to her that she ever let see the depressive side. She got more what we called “atta boys” than the rest of the staff put together. In other words if a staffer did something really nice to a guest they could say so on a form, naming the employee.
I only got a couple of them all my Summers there. She would get one just about every week or even more. I always suspected it had more to do with her beautiful smile than anything else.
The only time I caught the mean side was I was fixing her car which had a problem running rough. I took out a plug and immediately saw the problem. The plug gap was way too tight.
I fixed the firest one then was working on the second when she asked if I knew what I was doing. Well I just made a joke and said I had no idea what I was doing.
She then jumped up and said “then why are you working on it” I then told her I was just kidding and knew exactly what was wrong.
She seemed pleasant again.
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