Reserpine for the treatment of refractory mania

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Abstract

We report a case of refractory mania treated successfully with reserpine. The patient was a 26-year-old man with bipolar I disorder, who had recurrent hospital admissions for manic episodes that failed to respond to multiple mood stabilisers and antipsychotics. The patient also suffered from hypertension. His manic symptoms improved markedly with the addition of reserpine to the treatment regimen. Reserpine is a centrally acting antihypertensive with anti-adrenergic properties. It has been found to reduce the duration of a manic episode rapidly in a small group of studies. This proved to be the case with this patient. Reserpine used in conjunction with other psychotropic medication may be considered in the treatment of refractory mania, but controlled trials are necessary to support our finding more generally.

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Neuropsychiatric consequences of cardiovascular medications

Jeff Huffman, Theodore A Stern (2007)

The use of cardiovascular medications can have a variety of neuropsychiatric consequences. Many cardiovascular agents cause higher rates of fatigue and sedation than placebo, and case reports of medication-induced mood syndromes, psychosis, and cognitive disturbances exist for many cardiovascular drugs. Depression has been associated with β-blockers, methyldopa, and reserpine, but more recent syntheses of the data have suggested that these associations are much weaker than originally believed. Though low cholesterol levels have been associated with depression and suicide, lipid-lowering agents have not been associated with these adverse effects. Finally, cardiovascular medications may have beneficial neuropsychiatric consequences; for example, the use of clonidine in patients with attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder, the use of prazosin for patients with post-traumatic stress disorder, and the use of propranolol for performance anxiety and akathisia.