April 12, 2006An Honest Researcher On Bipolar DepressionFor the last few years, I have felt a whole lot like Diogenes, minus the lamp, wandering around looking for an honest psych researcher who will admit openly just how dicey the evidence is supporting the use of psych meds. Researchers I have interviewed will cop to the sad state of affairs off-the-record, but are much more guarded in their on-the-record pronouncements and in publications. That makes the following all the more striking to me: "Indeed, perhaps the most striking finding of a recent (2004) meta-analysis nof antidepressant therapy of bipolar affective disorder that spanned more than 40 years of research in all types of antidepressants (including tricyclic antidepressants [TCAs], older and newer selective monoamine oxidase inhibitors [MAOIs], diverse second-generation "heterocyclic" antidepressants, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors [SSRIs], bupropion, and serotonin norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors [SNRIs]) was that there were a grand total of a mere 11 randomized controlled trials (RCTs) conducted to date. Of these, only 5 included a placebo-control group. The state of the evidence is, in a word, abysmal." (Emphasis mine.) Making this statement (on Medscape, registration required) was Michael Thase, a psychiatry prof at Pitt's medical school. He was writing about anti-depressants and bipolar disorder, and more specifically bipolar depression. He's making a very important point for a few reasons: bipolars, when they are cycling, spend 3 times as long in depressive states as they do manic states; anti-depressants have been aggressively prescribed to bipolars for at least 15 years with spotty results; and, AstraZeneca is pushing like mad dogs to get Seroquel approved to treat bipolar depression. So good for you, Mike. But why does he have to say this on Medscape as opposed to in the pages of something like AJP? Speaking of problems with evidence base, one of two studies touting Zyprexa as a mood stabilizer--for the long-term maintenance of bipolar disorder!!!--shows that the med was about 50 percent effective at preventing relapses over a 48-week period. Relapses mind you, were the measure, not remission, which means Zyprexa likely remitted X percent of symptoms as opposed to nuking them altogether. Given the drug's high cost and tough effects on patients' bodies, I wonder if this study, paid for by Eli Lilly, impresses anyone? Posted by Philip Dawdy at April 12, 2006 12:06 AM
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ZYPREXA cause your DIABETES? Victims networking site. Have you taken Zyprexa and developed diabetes?Information and news site for Victims. I was prescribed Zyprexa from 1996 until 2000. In early 2000 i was shocked to have an A1C test result of 13.9 (normal is 4-6) I have no history of diabetes in my family. MY www.zyprexa-victims.com site documents my efforts to seek recovery and compensation from the Eli Lilly drug company for causing my diabetes. A special hardship in my case is an ileostomy from long-standing ulcerative colitis,this prevents me from eating a high fiber diet to control my blood sugar and adds to the cost of my diabetes management. *Best info page on zyprexa *Resource page for Zyprexa Victims *Latest Zyprexa news from google news wire *Yahoo Zyprexa search websites,news & blogs *MSN news wire for Zyprexa *Zyprexa discussion forum NEW Yes,help today is only a mouse click away-Daniel Haszard http://www.zyprexa-victims.com Well. I know 6 years of Zyprexa use in a child age 11-18 did some damage, and as to how much we will never know, one thing we do know, she can't go off of it, she did have relapses when trying to go off of it, and I just love studies paid for by the sales company. I think my daughter needs a check cut by them to survive now. (oh but they would win in court, no doubt, nothing can be proven, and it couldn't possibly be a doctor's fault, so there is no one to blame, and when a person wants to blame someone for shit in life, where does that lead us. Up a road without a car. Posted by: Stephany at April 12, 2006 03:15 PM |
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