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Plasma Folate and Affective Morbidity During Long-Term Lithium Therapy

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  29 January 2018

A. Coppen  and
M. T. Abou-Saleh
A. Coppen
Affiliation:
MRC Neuropsychiatry Research Laboratory, West Park Hospital, Epsom, Surrey KT19 8PB, England
M. T. Abou-Saleh
Affiliation:
MRC Neuropsychiatry Research Laboratory, West Park Hospital, Epsom, Surrey KT19 8PB, England
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Summary

In 107 patients on long-term lithium, those with lower plasma folate concentration had a higher affective morbidity than those with higher folate, both at the time and during the previous two years. The association was not the result of weight change or the concomitant use of other drugs. Animal work reporting a decreased synthesis of 5-HT both in folate-deficient animals and in animals fed excessive amounts of folate suggests that it may be important for lithium patients to receive folate supplements to their diet for maximum therapeutic effect.

Type
Research Article
Information
The British Journal of Psychiatry , Volume 141 , Issue 1 , July 1982 , pp. 87 - 89
Copyright
Copyright © The Royal College of Psychiatrists 

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