TREATMENT OF ACUTE BIPOLAR DEPRESSION - A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

Objective: Our goal was to ascertain the efficacy of various antidepre ssant treatments for acute bipolar depression. Method: English article s that reported on the efficacy of antidepressant treatments in bipola r depression were located by computerized Medline and manual search. T hese studies were systematically reviewed and response rates for each treatment were computed Results: The available data suggest that mood stabilizers, MAOIs, cyclic antidepressants, and ECT are all effective in treating bipolar depression. All antidepressant treatments with the exception of mood stabilizers have been reported to induce a manic/hy pomanic switch. Conclusions: If is recommended that mood stabilizers m ay be the first step of treatment followed by the addition of an antid epressant especially a cyclic antidepressant The specific symptoms pro file of individual patients, such as anergic or psychotic features, ma y indicate more specific treatment options ECT is an important measure for those who are pharmacotherapy-resistant or psychotic.