Zyprexa (olanzapine) was found to be more effective than lithium in helping patients with bipolar disorder remain in remission and prevent relapse into mania, according to new data presented at the Third European Stanley Foundation Conference on Bipolar Disorder.
The year-long study showed that in the maintenance treatment of bipolar disorder, patients taking Zyprexa relapsed into mania only half as often as patients taking lithium, which has long been considered a standard of care for stabilizing mood in bipolar disorder. The two treatments were comparable with regard to preventing relapse into depression. In addition, significantly more Zyprexa-treated patients completed the study and significantly fewer were hospitalized.
“While both drugs performed well, Zyprexa was found to be superior to lithium. This is especially impressive from a clinical standpoint given that lithium has been the gold standard for decades for the prevention of mania,” said Frederick Goodwin, M.D., Director, Center on Neuroscience, Medical Progress, and Society, George Washington University Medical Center, Washington, DC. “This advance is very encouraging for the long-term treatment of the disease, meanwhile, we must continue our efforts to improve outcomes for bipolar depression.”
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