Omega-3 Supplementation for Psychotic Mania and Comorbid Anxiety in Children.
OBJECTIVE
Therapeutic benefits of omega-3 fatty acids (Ω3) for mood disorders, psychosis, and anxiety have been reported in the literature. The purpose of the present article is to provide a literature review of Ω3 supplementation for affective disorders and to illustrate the benefits of Ω3 with a case presentation of a young girl with a history of bipolar disorder-type 1 with psychotic features and generalized anxiety disorder.


METHODS
Reviewed literature includes treatment studies of the impact of Ω3 on child mood disorders supplemented by review of meta-analyses within the adult mood disorders literature. The subject of this case report participated in 11 in-depth diagnostic and functional assessments over 5 years as part of an unrelated study. Three years were presupplementation and 2 years were with supplementation with no other medication changes, thus making a naturalistic multiple-baseline single-subject experiment.


RESULTS
Augmentation over a 2 year period was notable for clinically significant and sustained improvement in depressive, manic, and psychotic symptoms.


CONCLUSIONS
Ω3 supplementation may be a safe, adjunct intervention for treating bipolar disorder in children and adolescents, even in the presence of psychotic and anxious features. The 2 year follow-up in this case offers hope of an accumulating and enduring benefit. Further research into mechanisms of Ω3 action and of combination treatment with other well-known interventions for mood disorders would be beneficial.
1 Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center , Columbus, Ohio.|2 Department of Psychology, The Ohio State University , Columbus, Ohio.
Anthony T
AT
Vesco
3 Department of Psychology, Case Western Reserve University , Cleveland, Ohio.
Jennifer
J
Lehmann
1 Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center , Columbus, Ohio.|4 Center for Innovation in Pediatric Practice, The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital , Nationwide Children's Hospital, Columbus, Ohio.
Barbara L
BL
Gracious
1 Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center , Columbus, Ohio.
L Eugene
LE
Arnold
1 Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center , Columbus, Ohio.
Andrea S
AS
Young
1 Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Health, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center , Columbus, Ohio.|2 Department of Psychology, The Ohio State University , Columbus, Ohio.
Mary A
MA
Fristad
D000293:Adolescent; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy*; D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy*; D002648:Child; D019587:Dietary Supplements; D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3 / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D019964:Mood Disorders / Q000188:drug therapy*
D015525:Fatty Acids, Omega-3