Psychopharmacology
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Multi-center, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study of quetiapine extended-release formulation in Japanese patients with bipolar depression.
Quetiapine fumarate is an atypical antipsychotic indicated for various mental disorders, but it has not been studied in Japanese patients with bipolar depression. ⋯ Once-daily monotherapy with quetiapine XR is an effective and well-tolerated treatment for bipolar depression in Japanese patients.
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Efficacy and safety of quetiapine extended release monotherapy in bipolar depression: a multi-center, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.
Quetiapine extended release (XR) has been used to treat various psychiatric disorders, including depressive episodes associated with bipolar I and II disorders. Quetiapine XR is the first approved drug in China for the treatment of bipolar disorder. ⋯ This study, which is the first to evaluate 300 mg/day quetiapine XR monotherapy for depression in Chinese patients with bipolar disorders, found that this drug was superior to the placebo. Quetiapine XR was generally safe and well tolerated (ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT01256177).
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Randomized Controlled Trial Multicenter Study
Efficacy and safety of the novel α₄β₂ neuronal nicotinic receptor partial agonist ABT-089 in adults with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled crossover study.
α(4)β(2) Neuronal nicotinic receptors (NNRs) are implicated in the pathophysiology of attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). ⋯ In this phase 2 crossover study, the NNR partial agonist ABT-089, at doses of 40 mg QD and 40 mg BID, was efficacious and generally well tolerated in treatment of adults with ADHD.
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Multicenter Study Comparative Study
Varenicline as a smoking cessation aid in schizophrenia: effects on smoking behavior and reward sensitivity.
Smoking rates are up to five times higher in people with schizophrenia than in the general population, placing these individuals at high risk for smoking-related health problems. Varenicline, an α4β2 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor partial agonist, is a promising aid for smoking cessation in this population. To maximize treatment efficacy while minimizing risks, it is critical to identify reliable predictors of positive response to varenicline in smokers with schizophrenia. ⋯ These data suggest that affective flattening symptoms in smokers with schizophrenia may predict response to varenicline.
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Multicenter Study
The effects of cannabinoids on serum cortisol and prolactin in humans.
Cannabis is one of the most widely used illicit substances, and there is growing interest in the therapeutic applications of cannabinoids. While known to modulate neuroendocrine function, the precise acute and chronic dose-related effects of cannabinoids in humans are not well-known. Furthermore, the existing literature on the neuroendocrine effects of cannabinoids is limited by small sample sizes (n = 6-22), heterogeneous samples with regard to cannabis exposure (lumping users and nonusers), lack of controlling for chronic cannabis exposure, differing methodologies, and limited dose-response data. Delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Delta-9-THC) was hypothesized to produce dose-related increases in plasma cortisol levels and decreases in plasma prolactin levels. Furthermore, relative to controls, frequent users of cannabis were hypothesized to show altered baseline levels of these hormones and blunted Delta-9-THC-induced changes of these hormones. ⋯ These group differences may be related to the development of tolerance to the neuroendocrine effects of cannabinoids. Alternatively, these results may reflect inherent differences in neuroendocrine function in frequent users of cannabis and not a consequence of cannabis use.