New Findings On Bipolar Medication

Adding antidepressants to mood-stabilizing drugs offers no help treating bipolar disorder, shows a clinical trial funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) and published online yesterday in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Three-hundred sixty-six patients taking mood stabilizers for bipolar disorder were recruited for the study and randomized to receive either one of two antidepressants, Paxil or Welbutrin XL, or a placebo, with doctors optimizing dosages to ensure patients received the most appropriate amount.

After 26 weeks, 24 percent of those on antidepressants had stayed well for at least eight weeks in a row, compared to 27 percent of those on the placebo. These results, which show no benefit to the addition of antidepressants, come as a surprise to researchers, who now look toward longer trials and investigating the efficacy of other antidepressants which may provide better outcomes than the two used in this study.

Press Release: Study Sheds Light on Medication Treatment Options for Bipolar Disorder
FULL TEXT: Effectiveness of Adjunctive Antidepressant Treatment for Bipolar Depression