Defining phenotypes of long-term lithium and valproate response, including combination therapy: a modified application of the Alda scale in patients with bipolar disorders.

ABSTRACT:

Background

When evaluating the long-term treatment response to mood stabilizers using the Alda scale, mood stabilizer combination therapy is typically considered a confounding factor, and patients receiving combination therapy are excluded from the analysis. However, this may result in bias if those under combination therapy are worse treatment responders. This study aims to explore whether the Alda scale is applicable to patients taking lithium and valproate combination therapy. We compared long-term treatment response in patients receiving monotherapy and combination therapy of the two drugs, and investigated clinical correlates of the responses to each drug.

Methods

The study subjects consisted of 102 patients with bipolar I (BD-I) or bipolar II (BD-II) disorder who had b

SUBMITTER: Lee J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7677416 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature