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VNS
Sun, 05/23/2010 - 15:54Topic: Complementary Therapies
Hi, I'm new to the site (have been reading quite a bit but this is my first post) and I was wondering if anyone knew if Vagus nerve stimulators could be used in people with bipolar disorder as well? I don't see my neurologist for a couple more weeks and he's kind of hard to get in touch with (he runs 4 offices...) and wanted any feedback I could get. Oh yes, I have been diagnosed with left temporal lobe epilepsy and had a single tonic clonic seizure in '07 (resulted in intubation and a two day ICU stay). Any response is appreciated :)
Re: VNS
Submitted by phylisfjohnson on Mon, 2010-05-24 - 14:41
This comes from the VNS Therapy Site:
"VNS Therapy is approved by the FDA as an add-on, long-term treatment of chronic or recurrent depression for people 18 years of age or older who are experiencing a major depressive episode and have not had an adequate response to four or more adequate antidepressant treatments. VNS Therapy is appropriate for people with bipolar treatment-resistant depression who may benefit from a long-term treatment shown to improve over time and last long term.
Of the 205 people evaluated in a major clinical study of VNS Therapy, approximately 10% had been diagnosed with bipolar treatment-resistant depression. About 1 in 3 of these people experienced significant mood improvement with VNS Therapy, the same as for people who had unipolar treatment resistant-depression. The safety and effectiveness of VNS Therapy for this group of people was comparable to people with unipolar treatment-resistant depression. People with bipolar depression were just as likely to experience improvement with VNS Therapy as those with unipolar treatment-resistant depression.
VNS Therapy is not approved for rapid-cycling bipolar disorder. Research is ongoing to determine the safety and efficacy of VNS Therapy for rapid-cycling bipolar disorder." Phylis Feiner Johnson www.epilepsytalk.com
This comes from the VNS Therapy Site:
"VNS Therapy is approved by the FDA as an add-on, long-term treatment of chronic or recurrent depression for people 18 years of age or older who are experiencing a major depressive episode and have not had an adequate response to four or more adequate antidepressant treatments. VNS Therapy is appropriate for people with bipolar treatment-resistant depression who may benefit from a long-term treatment shown to improve over time and last long term.
Of the 205 people evaluated in a major clinical study of VNS Therapy, approximately 10% had been diagnosed with bipolar treatment-resistant depression. About 1 in 3 of these people experienced significant mood improvement with VNS Therapy, the same as for people who had unipolar treatment resistant-depression. The safety and effectiveness of VNS Therapy for this group of people was comparable to people with unipolar treatment-resistant depression. People with bipolar depression were just as likely to experience improvement with VNS Therapy as those with unipolar treatment-resistant depression.
VNS Therapy is not approved for rapid-cycling bipolar disorder. Research is ongoing to determine the safety and efficacy of VNS Therapy for rapid-cycling bipolar disorder." Phylis Feiner Johnson www.epilepsytalk.com