RESULTS There is sufficient evidence for a Grade A recommendation of the use of olanzapine plus fluoxetine at reducing depressive symptoms in bipolar depression and of quetiapine at high doses for depressive symptoms occurring during mixed episodes .
These results mostly overlap with the approved treatments for bipolar depression in adults
BACKGROUND The management of depressive and mixed symptoms in children and adolescents with bipolar disorder ( BD ) remains a matter of debate .
The goal of this review is , thus , to systematic ally examine the impact of atypical antipsychotics ( AAPs ) and mood stabilisers in the treatment of bipolar depression and /or mixed states .
Divalproex monotherapy in the treatment of bipolar offspring with mood and behavioral disorders and at least mild affective symptoms.
BACKGROUND Offspring of parents with bipolar disorder , by virtue of their high-risk status for developing bipolar disorder , merit an investigation of the efficacy of treatment with mood stabilizers . Behavioral and mood difficulties in this population may represent prodromal forms of bipolar disorder . We studied the efficacy of divalproex in treating child and adolescent bipolar offspring with mood or behavioral disorders who did not yet meet criteria for bipolar I or II disorder . METHOD We studied 24 children aged 6 - 18 years ( mean = 11.3 years ; 17 boys/7 girls ) with at least 1 biological parent with bipolar disorder . Participants were diagnosed by the Washington University in St. Louis Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia with at least 1 of the following DSM-IV disorders : major depressive disorder , dysthymic disorder , cyclothymic disorder , or attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder . Subjects all had at least moderate affective symptoms ( 28-item Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression or Young Mania Rating Scale score > 12 ) . After a 2-week washout period , subjects were treated with divalproex for 12 weeks , titrated to achieve serum levels of 50 - 120 micro g/mL ( mean final dose = 821 mg/day ; mean final serum level = 79.0 micro g/mL ) . RESULTS One subject discontinued after 2 weeks due to continuation of symptoms . Of the remaining 23 subjects , 18 ( 78 % ) were considered responders by primary outcome criteria ( " very much improved " or " much improved " on the Clinical Global Impressions-Improvement scale ) . Divalproex was well tolerated with no discontinuations due to adverse effects . CONCLUSION Bipolar offspring with mood or behavioral disorders and at least mild affective symptoms may respond to divalproex treatment . Our study was limited by the open treatment , lack of a placebo group , and the heterogeneous nature of the sample . Controlled studies are warranted in the use of divalproex in symptomatic bipolar offspring
RESULTS There is sufficient evidence for a Grade A recommendation of the use of olanzapine plus fluoxetine at reducing depressive symptoms in bipolar depression and of quetiapine at high doses for depressive symptoms occurring during mixed episodes .
These results mostly overlap with the approved treatments for bipolar depression in adults
BACKGROUND The management of depressive and mixed symptoms in children and adolescents with bipolar disorder ( BD ) remains a matter of debate .
The goal of this review is , thus , to systematic ally examine the impact of atypical antipsychotics ( AAPs ) and mood stabilisers in the treatment of bipolar depression and /or mixed states .