Lithium is a mood stabilizer and can help to deal with or prevent mania. It can additionally be used to lower the frequency of anxiety episodes.
Take this medication as routed by your physician. It is important to consume alcohol lots of fluids while taking this medication. Lithium may engage with certain medications that impact serotonin (such as antidepressants, SSRIs, MAO preventions). Tell your medical professional regarding all of your medicines.
Mood Conditions
Lithium is often made use of to treat bipolar illness, a mental disorder that causes extremely fast changes in between the extreme state of minds of anxiety and mania. Bipolar disorder can make it difficult to live a regular life and can create significant problems in connections, work or institution. Lithium aids to stop these severe mood modifications and lowers the intensity of depression and mania.
The early research studies of lithium at Glostrup Psychiatric Hospital in the 1960s and 1970s supplied persuading proof that it can lower the regularity of hospital stays for depression (38 ). Baastrup and Schou's placebo-controlled discontinuance study was especially essential since it showed that clients fell back on placebo but not on lithium (39 ).
Your doctor will check your blood levels routinely to ensure you are taking the appropriate amount of lithium. It is essential to drink plenty of fluids while taking this medicine. Your medical professional might advise a low-sodium diet regimen while you are taking this medication.
Attention Deficit Disorder (ADHD).
Lithium is a mineral so soft you can cut it with a knife and so light it floats on water. It is located naturally in the atmosphere, with studies connecting low levels of it to psychological and mental illness and violent criminal activity. The mineral was added to sodas in the 1960s, where it brightened moods and aided people concentrate and concentrate-- for this reason the name, 7-Up.
Lithium reduces mania by boosting the action of an enzyme that controls natural chemicals, decreasing glutamate degrees, and aiding to balance various other chemicals in the mind. It has additionally been revealed to have antidepressant impacts and boost sleep, irritation, aggressiveness, and anxiety in ADHD people.
People taking lithium must have normal blood tests to keep an eye on degrees-- too high can be hazardous. It is necessary to let medical professionals know about various other medications and supplements taken, as some can communicate with it. Inform your doctor if you have diarrhea, throwing up, sleepiness, tremors, weakness, unstable strolling, or fainting (especially after exercise). Usage reliable contraception to avoid pregnancy while taking this medication.
Hyperthyroidism.
Lithium might be made use of as a short-term treatment for overactive thyroid glands (hyperthyroidism). This is particularly crucial if the person has Graves disease or other autoimmune problems like thyroiditis or Hashimoto's condition. Lithium hinders the launch of thyroid hormone by blocking iodine uptake at the thyroid gland with the sodium-iodide symporter individual therapy and by disrupting tyrosine iodination. [9] Lithium additionally hinders thyrotropin-releasing hormonal agent (TRH) stimulation and decreases the production of thyroxine from tyrosine in the thyroid gland. [10] Nevertheless, lithium usage might cause hypothyroidism and a goiter in some people. [11] Hence, frequent assessment of thyroid function tests and dimension is encouraged in people on lithium therapy.
It is important to talk about the benefits and risks of this medicine with your physician prior to beginning it. It is likewise crucial to prevent items reduced in salt (salt) while taking this medication and beverage sufficient liquids. If you have any kind of troubles, call your physician or the emergency situation department as soon as possible.
Epilepsy.
The anticonvulsant effects of lithium are well established from both professional and experimental researches. It is important to keep in mind that in contrast to a few primitive scientific reports and the lithium-pilocarpine animal design, a variety of recent research studies demonstrate that lithium in healing degrees does not decrease the seizure threshold however in fact decreases the threshold for seizure incident.
This is believed to be due to the reality that lithium boosts cholinergic activity, inhibits phosphoinositide metabolic rate and GSK-3b signalling. It likewise reduces glutamate excitotoxicity by boosting NMDA receptor agonist-evoked apoptotic currents and enhances the endogenous nitric oxide synthase task in neurons [36]
Lithium is well tolerated by most people with bipolar disorder, yet it has a few side effects that need to be taken into account. These consist of a minimized ability to concentrate pee (nephrogenic diabetes insipidus) and a rise in the concentration of lithium in the blood (lithium poisoning). It is for that reason very crucial to follow your doctor's guidelines regarding having regular blood examinations.
