Despite its prevalence and disease burden, several chasms still exist with regard to the pharmacotherapy of bipolar disorder (BD). Polypharmacy is commonly encountered as a significant proportion of patients remain symptomatic, and the management of the depressive phase of the illness is a particular challenge. Gabapentin and pregabalin have often been prescribed off-label in spite of a Gabapentin is commonly used off-label in the treatment of psychiatric disorders with success, failure, and controversy. A systematic review of the literature was performed to elucidate the evidence for clinical benefit of gabapentin in psychiatric The gabapentinoids, gabapentin, and pregabalin, target the α<sub>2</sub>δ subunits of voltage-gated calcium channels. Initially licensed for pain and seizures, they have become widely prescribed drugs. Many of these uses are off-label for psychiatric indications, and there is increasing concern abou Conclusion: Gabapentin was effective in the treatment of mania and hypomania in patients with bipolar and schizoaffective disorders. If confirmed in controlled studies, these findings suggest that gabapentin represents a well-tolerated, rapidly acting antimanic agent. The use of gabapentin in bipolar disorder (BPD) treatment provides an informative case of off-label uptake and abandonment of a new medication. Gabapentin was patented by Warner-Lambert in 1977 and FDA-approved in December1993 for the adjunctive treatment of epilepsy and in 2002 for postherpetic neuralgia (see Appendix 1 for timeline). The gabapentinoids, gabapentin, and pregabalin, target the α2δ subunits of voltage-gated calcium channels. Initially licensed for pain and seizures, they have become widely prescribed drugs. Many of these uses are off-label for psychiatric Key takeaways: Gabapentin is a medication that’s used to treat seizures, nerve pain from shingles, and restless leg syndrome. Despite previous marketing claims, there’s no evidence that gabapentin is a good treatment for bipolar disorder. The best treatment for bipolar disorder is therapy and a combination of other medications. These include mood stabilizers, anticonvulsants, and with bipolar I, bipolar II, and treat-ment-resistant depression.3 Thus, the new FDA approvals for bipolar mania for quetiapine and ziprasidone and pending for aripiprazole mean the possibility of adding new options to the treatment formula for bipolar spectrum disorders, including some with less risk of weight gain and per-haps diabetes.10 Any Bipolar Disorders publishes research of relevance to the basic mechanisms, clinical aspects, or treatment of bipolar disorders and related illnesses. This article reviews evidence-based psychiatric uses of gabapentin, along with associated risks. An extensive literature review was conducted, primarily of articles searchable in PubMed, relating to psychiatric uses, safety, and adverse effects of Gabapentin is a nerve pain medication and anticonvulsant that has proven to be effective for people who have hard-to-treat depression or other mood disorders. Two new anticonvulsants, lamotrigine and gabapentin, have been used increasingly for bipolar disorder in the past several years. Despite this array of options, bipolar disorder remains a difficult disorder to treat. Some subtypes, such as those characterized by rapid cycling or mixed episodes, have been especially resistant to lithium treatment. Bipolar disorder (BD) Four DB-RCTs investigating the efficacy of gabapentin in BD were identified. 101 patients were randomised to receive gabapentin, 81 to placebo, 30 to lamotrigine and 19 to Keywords: bipolar disorder, psychopharmacology, gabapentinoids, gabapentin, pregabalin 1. Introduction Bipolar disorder (BD) is a debilitating mental illness that affects more than 1% of the world’s population [1]. Its lifetime prevalence in adults across 11 countries was estimated to be 0.4% [2]. Gabapentin is not an effective medication for bipolar disorder, according to randomized trials and current guidelines. The Psychiatry Consultation Line (PCL) is a free resource for providers in Washington State to discuss bipolar disorder treatment options with psychiatrists. Although failing to show clear antimanic efficacy in randomized trials, gabapentin still remains a clinically useful agent when it comes to combination treatment in refractory and co-morbid patients. This review aims to examine literature concerning the efficacy of GBP on the entire spectrum of bipolar disorders, taking this area to include also, as defined by current literature, the ‘softer clinical’ expression of bipolarity between the extremes of full-blown bipolar disorder where the person has at least one manic episode (bipolar I) and strictly defined unipolar major depressive Abstract Background: Gabapentin, a new anti-epileptic agent, has been anecdotally reported to be effective in the treatment of mania. We systematically assessed the response rate in bipolar patients being treated adjunctively with gabapentin for manic symptoms, depressive symptoms, or rapid cycling not responsive to standard treatments. Gabapentin may be a useful drug for the add-on treatment of bipolar patients with poor response to other mood stabilizers. Gabapentin may improve depressive residual symptoms such as irritability, social withdrawal or anxiety. These results should be confirmed in randomized clinical trials.
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