Bipolar Disorder News and Research

Latest Bipolar Disorder News and Research

SK Biopharmaceuticals receives FDA Orphan Drug status for carisbamate

SK Biopharmaceuticals, a South Korean pharmaceutical company, announced today that it was granted special status by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for carisbamate for the management of patients with infantile spasms (IS), a form of epilepsy associated with increased risk of death or mental retardation.

20 Apr 2012

Brain size and IQ secret may lie in genes: Study

The study, conducted by a team of more than 200 scientists from 100 institutions worldwide, measured the size of the brain and its memory centers in thousands of MRI images from 21,151 healthy people while simultaneously screening their DNA. According to the researchers, a variant in a gene called HMGA2 affected the brain size, as well as a person's intelligence.

18 Apr 2012

Northwestern's Stone Institute launches new program to combat mental illnesses at first signs

Early symptoms of major mental illness can be subtle personality changes. Therefore, initial warning signs can often be missed, or even ignored due to conventional wisdom that suggests it's better to wait for true behavioral deterioration and prolonged patterns of abnormality before diagnosing and treating a mental illness. But experts warn that waiting until someone is so ill that the psychological sickness is unmistakable can be detrimental and can lead to long-term health concerns.

17 Apr 2012

New genes may explain individual differences in brain size and intelligence

In the world's largest brain study to date, a team of more than 200 scientists from 100 institutions worldwide collaborated to map the human genes that boost or sabotage the brain's resistance to a variety of mental illnesses and Alzheimer's disease.

16 Apr 2012

Emotional and instrumental support likely to play a critical role in recovery from mental illness

Does the growing number of psychiatric disorder diagnoses have an effect on people with mental illnesses? According to a new study, as definitions of mental illnesses become broader, people who show signs of depression and other common mental illnesses are less likely to evoke a supportive response from friends and family members as are people with other severe mental disorders.

10 Apr 2012

Research roundup: Effects of health exchanges; Improving provider performance; Governors' 2013 budgets and Medicaid

Authors analyzed the cost and coverage implications of various scenarios of the health insurance exchanges that are called for in the health law. They predicted that about 1 million uninsured people in the state would get insurance through the exchanges and said that premiums in the small group and individual market would be lower than if the health law was not in effect.

7 Apr 2012

Stem Cells reports results of Neuralstem ALS Phase I trial

Neuralstem, Inc. announced that safety results from the first 12 patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease) to receive its stem cells were reported online in the peer-reviewed publication, Stem Cells, on March 13th.

29 Mar 2012

Mylan receives FDA approval for generic Seroquel ANDA

Mylan Inc. today announced that its subsidiary Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc. has received final approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for its Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) for Quetiapine Fumarate Tablets, 25 mg.

29 Mar 2012

SK Biopharmaceuticals initiates YKP10811 phase 2 trial in chronic constipation

SK Biopharmaceuticals, a South Korean pharmaceutical company, announced today that the first patient was dosed in a phase 2 clinical trial in the US for patients suffering with chronic constipation using their new chemical entity YKP10811.

17 Mar 2012

Smartphone technology can help assess and treat schizophrenia

Psychiatry is employing smartphone technology as an innovative tool in the assessment and treatment of schizophrenia and other serious mental illness. Prominent in this endeavor is Dror Ben-Zeev, an assistant professor of psychiatry at Dartmouth Medical School and director of the Thresholds-Dartmouth Research Center in Chicago.

16 Mar 2012

Scientists gain insight into why lithium salts are effective at treating bipolar disorder

Scientists have gained insight into why lithium salts are effective at treating bipolar disorder in what could lead to more targeted therapies with fewer side-effects.

14 Mar 2012

FDA denies AstraZeneca Citizen Petitions on SEROQUEL labeling

AstraZeneca today announced that on March 7, 2012, the Food and Drug Administration denied Citizen Petitions requesting that the FDA withhold finally approving any generic quetiapine product with labeling that omits certain hyperglycemia warning language that the FDA required AstraZeneca to include in the labeling for SEROQUEL (quetiapine fumarate) tablets and SEROQUEL XR (quetiapine fumarate) extended-release tablets.

12 Mar 2012

CB2 receptor involved in regulating impulsive behaviour

A new study lead by the Neuroscience Institute of Alicante reveals how manipulating the endocannabinoid system can modulate high levels of impulsivity. This is the main problem in psychiatric illnesses such a schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and substance abuse.

8 Mar 2012

Transcranial direct current stimulation safe and effective treatment for depression

Stimulating the brain with a weak electrical current is a safe and effective treatment for depression and could have other surprise benefits for the body and mind, a major Australian study of transcranial Direct Current Stimulation (tDCS) has found.

7 Mar 2012

Shire to commence two Vyvanse and Concerta Phase 4 comparison trials for ADHD

As part of its continued commitment to ADHD research, Shire plc, the global specialty biopharmaceutical company, today announced it is initiating two Phase 4 clinical trials to compare Vyvanse (lisdexamfetamine dimesylate) Capsules, (CII) to Concerta (methylphenidate HCl) Extended-Release Tablets.

7 Mar 2012