title: Lithium: a therapeutic magic wand.
abstract: The premodern and modern history of lithium in medicine spans 130 years. While today the drug has a firmly established role in psychiatry, many issues have yet to be fully resolved. Discussed within (but still not fully resolved) are the effectiveness of lithium in treatment-resistant depression, whether a rebound relapse occurs following abrupt discontinuation, which serum levels are most desirable for acute and maintenance therapy, whether a certain dosage schedule is kinder to the kidney, the relationship of dosage schedule to 12-hour serum level, how to best monitor thyroid function, whether lithium causes kidney rot, and whether lithium and neuroleptics make a uniquely neurotoxic combination.
authors.affiliation: Lithium Information Center, Madison, WI.
authors.forename: J W
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Jefferson
mesh_terms: D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000188:drug therapy; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000188:drug therapy; D049672:History, 19th Century; D049673:History, 20th Century; D006801:Humans; D008094:Lithium / Q000266:history / Q000493:pharmacokinetics / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D014481:United States
chemical_list: D008094:Lithium