Bipolar Disorder Treatment Drugs

Lithium has for many years been the treatment of choice for bipolar disorder as it can be effective in smoothing out the mood swings common to this disorder.

Bipolar disorder treatment drugs. Bipolar disorder is often treated with mood stabilizing medications such as lithium divalproex sodium valproate and carbamazepine. The most effective treatment for bipolar disorder is a mood stabilizing agent. Some fight the extreme highs of mania and others treat the lows of depression. You ll typically need mood stabilizing medication to control manic or hypomanic episodes.

The good news is that the newer generation antipsychotic drugs like quetiapine appear to be effective while having fewer neurological side effects says dr. The drug of choice for most bipolar patients is alcohol although cocaine opioids marijuana and methamphetamines are also widely used sometimes in combination with alcohol. Antipsychotic drugs have long been known to be useful for the treatment of bipolar disorder but neurological side effects and toxicity have limited their long term use. Treatment choice will depend on the outcome of the evaluation.

Lithium carbonate can be. These medications even out the troughs and the peaks of mood swings to keep you on a more even keel. Most mood stabilizers are anticonvulsants antiepileptic drugs with the exception of lithium. Doctors use many types of drugs to treat bipolar disorder.

There are a variety of medications and psychotherapies that can be used to treat depressive disorders. Your doctor may. Your doctor may prescribe one or a combination of. Several types of medications are used to treat bipolar disorder.

If symptoms of depression or mania persist in spite of treatment with other medications adding an. The most widely used drugs for the treatment of bipolar disorder include lithium carbonate and valproic acid also known as depakote or generically as divalproex. The purpose of the review is to assess the effectiveness of drug and nondrug therapies for treating acute mania or depression symptoms and preventing relapse in adults with bipolar disorder bd diagnoses including bipolar i disorder bd i bipolar ii disorder bd ii and other types. Other treatments may include antipsychotics or antidepressants.