title: The Stanley Foundation Bipolar Network. I. Rationale and methods.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The Stanley Foundation Bipolar Network (SFBN) was created to address the paucity of help studies in bipolar illness.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To describe the rationale and methods of the SFBN.
  
  
  METHODS
  The SFBN includes five core sites and a number of affiliated sites that have adopted consistent methodology for continuous longitudinal monitoring of patients. Open and controlled studies are performed as patients' symptomatology dictates.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The reliability of SFBN raters and the validity of the rating instruments have been established. More than 500 patients are in continuous daily longitudinal follow-up. More than 125 have been randomised to one of three of the newer antidepressants (bupropion, sertraline and venlafaxine) as adjuncts in a study of mood stabilizers and 93 to omega-3 fatty acids. A number of open clinical case series have been published.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Well-characterised patients are followed in a detailed continuous longitudinal fashion in both opportunistic case series and double-blind, randomised controlled trials with reliable and validated measures.
authors.affiliation: National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA.
authors.forename: R M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Post
authors.forename: W A
authors.initials: WA
authors.lastname: Nolen
authors.forename: R W
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Kupka
authors.forename: K D
authors.initials: KD
authors.lastname: Denicoff
authors.forename: G S
authors.initials: GS
authors.lastname: Leverich
authors.forename: P E
authors.initials: PE
authors.lastname: Keck
authors.forename: S L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: McElroy
authors.forename: A J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Rush
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Suppes
authors.forename: L L
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Altshuler
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Frye
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Grunze
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Walden
mesh_terms: D018692:Antimanic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D015337:Multicenter Studies as Topic / Q000379:methods*; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic / Q000379:methods; D012107:Research Design
chemical_list: D018692:Antimanic Agents