Antidepressant Augmentation: A Review of the Literature and a Review of the Pharmacoeconomic Considerations.

Purpose: Antidepressant augmentation strategies for treatment-resistant depression (TRD) are discussed here with an analysis of patient out-of-pocket costs for various medications. The choice of agent ranges from newer atypical antipsychotics (aripiprazole, brexpiprazole, quetiapine) to older agents including buspirone, liothyronine (T3), and lithium. We sought to better understand the differences among these agents to aid in clinical decision making.

Delirium Secondary to Lamotrigine Toxicity.

Background: Lamotrigine is a phenyltriazine medication that has been approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration as monotherapy and as an adjunctive agent for the treatment of seizure disorder. It was later approved by the FDA for the treatment of bipolar disorder. Lamotrigine is generally well tolerated by patients, but some serious symptoms can occur during treatment.

Hallucinations Associated with Topiramate Therapy: A Case Report and Review of the Literature.

Background: Topiramate is a medication that is approved as both monotherapy and adjunctive treatment of seizure disorder in adults and adolescents. It is also approved for migraine prophylaxis. It has been associated with many side effects, including weight loss and the development of renal stones.

Vampiristic behaviors in a patient with traumatic brain injury induced disinhibition.

Vampiristic behaviors are rarely seen clinically and less than 100 cases have been reported in the world literature to date. A distinction is usually made as to whether the patient drinks their own blood or the blood of others. We describe a 38-year-old patient who had vampiristic thoughts and fantasies that began in adolescence, but did not act on these thoughts until after she suffered a traumatic brain injury with a three-week loss of consciousness while serving in the military.

The Use of Fluoxetine in a Patient With Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy.

Takotsubo cardiomyopathy is an acute coronary syndrome that is believed to be brought on by stress. Symptoms, which are similar to an acute myocardial infarction, include chest pain, shortness of breath, arrhythmias, and cardiogenic shock, and the electrocardiogram often shows ST and T wave changes. Left ventricular wall hypokinesis along with a significantly reduced ejection fraction are seen on echocardiogram.

Lamotrigine Induced Whole Body Tics: A Case Report and Literature Review.

Lamotrigine is an anticonvulsant medication that also has utility in the treatment of bipolar disorder. It has been associated with many side effects, including rashes that can progress to Stevens-Johnson syndrome or toxic epidermal necrolysis. It has also been associated with the development of motor tics, most commonly in the head, neck, and shoulders.

Anti-NMDA Receptor Encephalitis in a Patient with Previous Psychosis and Neurological Abnormalities: A Diagnostic Challenge.

Anti-N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor encephalitis is an autoimmune disorder characterized by IgG autoantibodies directed against the NR1 subunit of the NMDA glutamate receptor. Psychiatric symptoms are common and include psychosis, mania, depressed mood, aggression, and speech abnormalities. Neurological symptoms such as seizures, decreased responsiveness, dyskinesias, and other movement abnormalities and/or autonomic instability are frequently seen as well.

Dystonia associated with lamotrigine therapy: a case report and review of the literature.

The association of extrapyramidal side effects (EPS) with the use of conventional antipsychotics is well established, however, EPS can occur during treatment with anticonvulsant medications as well. We will present the case of a patient who developed an acute dystonic reaction during treatment with lamotrigine and again during re-challenge with the same agent. We will review common side effects of this medication and the previous reports of lamotrigine-associated dystonias.

Covert dyskinesia associated with aripiprazole: a case report and review of the literature.

The atypical antipsychotic agents are felt by many to have a lower risk of inducing the development of dyskinetic movements than the conventional antipsychotic agents agents such as haloperidol and fluphenazine. However, that does not mean that treatment with the atypical antipsychotic agents carries no risk of developing dyskinesias. To the contrary, all of the atypical antipsychotic agents, including aripiprazole, have been associated with the induction of dyskinetic movements.

Lactic acidosis, hypotension, and sensorineural hearing loss following intentional metformin overdose.

Metformin and glyburide are antihyperglycemic agents that are widely used in the United States. There have been several cases of overdose of these medications reported in the world literature. Glyburide overdose is associated with hypoglycemia that can be severe, while metformin overdoses have been associated with lactic acidosis.

Memantine and catatonia: a case report and literature review.

Catatonia is a movement disorder with various possible etiologies. The majority of cases are associated with an underlying mood or psychotic disorder, while others are caused by medical conditions. Currently, benzodiazepines are the first-line psychopharmacologic agents in the treatment of catatonia.

Charles Bonnet syndrome: are medications necessary?

Charles Bonnet syndrome (CBS) is a clinical entity in which patients develop vivid visual hallucinations in the absence of psychiatric illness. In the great majority of cases, a decline in visual acuity precedes the development of CBS. The patient maintains intact reality testing and recognizes that the hallucinations are not real.

Olanzapine for the treatment of acquired neurogenic stuttering.

Stuttering is a vocal phenomenon, which manifests itself as disturbances in speech fluency. While stuttering is most commonly treated with speech therapy and psychotherapy, a number of antipsychotic agents have been investigated as possible treatments. We present the case of a 37-year-old man who developed a post-concussive syndrome with psychosis and associated stuttering after his second exposure to a blast from an improvised explosive device (IED).

Serotonin syndrome associated with the use of escitalopram.

Escitalopram is the newest selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) available for use in the United States. It has been approved for the treatment of major depression and generalized anxiety disorder. It is the S-enantiomer of the SSRI citalopram and is highly serotonin specific as it has minimal effect on the reuptake of dopamine or norepinephrine.

A survey of psychiatry residency programs: association between program characteristics and success in the 2003 NRMP.

While the number of medical students entering psychiatry has increased since the 1990's, little has been written about the program characteristics that draw students to specific psychiatry residency programs. We developed a survey regarding residency program characteristics and distributed it to the chief residents of each psychiatry residency program in the USA. Survey results were tabulated, and the presence of specific characteristics were correlated to the 2003 National Resident Matching Program (NRMP) results.

Acute akathisia associated with quetiapine use.

Because of their better side-effect profile, atypical antipsychotic agents have replaced conventional antipsychotic agents as the first-line treatment for schizophrenia. Although atypical agents are less likely to be associated with extrapyramidal symptoms, such symptoms sometimes do occur in patients treated with atypical agents. The authors report the cases of two patients who developed akathisia after treatment with quetiapine for insomnia, consider previously reported cases of akathisia induced by atypical antipsychotic agents, discuss other medications that can induce similar symptoms, discuss treatments for akathisia, and examine issues in the use of quetiapine as a soporific agent.

Psychosis induced by smoking cessation clinic administered anticholinergic overload.

Anticholinergic agents have multiple CNS effects, even when used in therapeutic doses. These can include sedation, amnesia, delirium and, in rare cases, psychosis. While there is some symptom overlap between delirium and psychosis, psychotic patients will have a clear sensorium.

Atypical antipsychotics in the treatment of delusional parasitosis.

Delusional parasitosis is the false belief that one's body is infested with one or many different living organisms. Historically, it has been treated with conventional antipsychotics with only moderate success. The conventional antipsychotic most commonly used has been pimozide.

Anxiety and depression in hospitalized patients in resistant organism isolation.

Background: Previous studies have reported an increase in psychiatric symptoms in seriously ill patients who were placed in resistant organism isolation. We conducted this study to assess whether there is an increase in symptoms of anxiety and depression in patients who are not critically ill and are placed in isolation.

Methods: Patients hospitalized with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus or vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus species infections were evaluated with the Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale and the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale at baseline and again during hospitalization.