Efficacy of clonidine in 24 patients with acute mania.
The authors treated 24 newly hospitalized patients suffering from acute mania with 450-900 micrograms/day of clonidine, an alpha 2-adrenergic agonist, for 2 weeks. A marked decrease in manic symptoms was observed after 5 and 13 days of treatment in about half of the patients. Early response seemed to predict the final result. Patients with a family history of affective disorder and patients who had had a good response to neuroleptics during a previous manic episode tended not to respond to clonidine. At the doses given, the patients' tolerance to clonidine was excellent: sedation was markedly lower than it is with neuroleptic treatment.
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000235:genetics / Q000523:psychology; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D003000:Clonidine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D005260:Female; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales
D003000:Clonidine