Lamotrigine in the maintenance treatment of bipolar disorder

Lamotrigine, an anticonvulsant drug, is licensed in the United States for the maintenance treatment of bipolar I disorder and in the UK to prevent depressive episodes in bipolar disorder. Hashimoto and colleagues (2021) performed a Cochrane Intervention Review to explore whether lamotrigine is effective and safe compared to the most established maintenance treatment, lithium, and placebo.

Michael Ostacher critically appraises and summarises a recent Cochrane systematic review, which presents the latest best evidence on the efficacy of lamotrigine in the maintenance treatment of bipolar disorder.

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Expertise from outside the Academy: tapering off antidepressants

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Mark Horowitz considers a recent article written by Adele Framer, Founder of SurvivingAntidepressants.org, which describes how best to help people who are tapering off antidepressants.

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First-hand experiences of taking antipsychotics: findings from a large online survey

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Georgie Buswell summarises a cross-sectional study, which used open questions to try and understand people’s lived experiences of taking antipsychotic drugs.

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Experience of psychotropic medication and decision-making

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Jennifer Rose Oulton reviews a qualitative study that explores the experiences of psychotropic medication use and decision-making for adults with learning disabilities and their carers.

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“Where I End And You Begin”: A personal commentary on Russo’s ‘Through the eyes of the observed’ #PsychDrugDebate

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Sarah Carr shares her own experiences of psychiatric medication and provides a critical reading of Jasna Russo’s new #PsychDrugDebate paper: ‘Through the eyes of the observed: re-directing the research on psychiatric drugs’.

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How should we redirect research on psychiatric drugs? #PsychDrugDebate

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Alison Faulkner dissects the new McPin Foundation Talking Point Paper by Jasna Russo entitled: Through the eyes of the observed: re-directing research on psychiatric drugs.

Follow #PsychDrugDebate today on Twitter for further discussion about this vital issue.

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Sexual function matters to people living with serious mental illness

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Rudiger Pittrof and Elana Covshoff from SHRINE (Sexual and Reproductive Health Rights, Inclusion and Empowerment) explore a recent review, which looks at the impact of severe mental disorders and psychotropic medications on sexual health and its implications for clinical management.

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Psychotropic medication: finding ways forward for adults with intellectual disabilities #RSMpsychotropics

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Rory Sheehan and Angela Hassiotis discuss how to optimise psychotropic medication for people with intellectual disabilities; the theme of their #RSMpsychotropics conference taking place in London today.

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Psychotropic medication in pregnancy: new evidence may help achieve a safe balance

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Joanne Wallace considers a recent health technology assessment on the risks and benefits of psychotropic medication in pregnancy, which supports previous associations between valproate and adverse child outcomes.

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Mental illness, challenging behaviour and psychotropic drugs #UCLJournalClub

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Join us at 2-3pm on Wednesday 18th May for the #UCLJournalClub, which will be live broadcasted on YouTube and live tweeted by the @LearningDisElf

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