A New Use For A Manic Depression Drug
The manufacturer of the drug Risperdal Consta, Alkermes, used to treat the manic episodes of manic depression, announced recently that it was seeking approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for "adjunctive maintenance" treatment.
The makers of the drug claim that it is an effective tool in delaying the occurrence of mood episodes in those with manic depression especially in those who suffer from frequently relapsing bipolar disorder.
The mental illness, characterized by severe and widely disparate mood swings is currently referred to as bipolar disorder by the medical community, even though many still refer to it by its original label manic depression.
For a diagnosis of frequently relapsing bipolar disorder to be made, an individual with manic depression must have suffered from four or more manic or depressive episodes in the previous year that were severe enough to require a doctor's care. According to statistics, this type of manic depression may affect as many as 10 percent of those who live with manic depression.
The request is based on the recent results of a study which reviewed those individuals who received Risperdal Consta as well as standard treatment with those who received that current standard treatment and a placebo. The results indicate that those with frequently relapsing bipolar disorder experienced a significant delay in the time to an initial relapse when the drug was combined with standard treatment.
This drug for manic depression is marketed in the United States by Janssen, a division of Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
Manic depression is characterized by severe mood swings that have the ability to take a person from the deepest depths of despair and depression to a euphoric high (the manic episode) which can include feelings of grandeur as well as hallucinations and other psychotic symptoms.
Medical estimates place upwards of 20 percent of those individuals suffering with manic depression to have frequently relapsing bipolar disorder. It's also referred to as "rapid-cycling" bipolar disorder. The mood swings seen in this type of manic depression can occur in any pattern. This kind of manic depression, unfortunately, is marked by the need for a greater amount of health care resources as well as more concomitant medications. The expected outcome, moreover, with this version of manic depression is usually poorer as well.
