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Lithium in the Treatment of Major Depressive Disorder

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Abstract

Recent high-quality studies have confirmed the central role of lithium in the treatment of bipolar disorder and have established lithium as the drug of first choice for long-term prophylaxis in this condition. However, several indications for its use in unipolar major depression are also based on sound evidence. This includes lithium augmentation as a main strategy for depressed patients not responding to an antidepressant, lithium prophylaxis for recurrent unipolar depression as an alternative to prophylaxis with an antidepressant, and lithium’s unique anti-suicidal properties. Lithium monotherapy, on the other hand, is not established for acute treatment of depression. Lithium therapy should be a core competency of every psychiatrist, enabling the safe use of lithium, to the benefit of our patients.

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Acknowledgments

TB is a secretary of the International Group for the Study of Lithium Treated Patients (IGSLI). Over the past 3 years, TB has received speaker’s honoraria from Lilly, AstraZeneca, Esparma, Bristol-Myers Squibb, Sanofi-Aventis, Servier, and Lundbeck, and has accepted reimbursement of travel expenses to congresses from AstraZeneca and Lundbeck. No sources of funding were used to assist with the preparation of this review.

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  1. Department of Psychiatry, Schlosspark-Clinic, Heubnerweg 2, 14059, Berlin, Germany

    Tom Bschor

  2. Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus, Technical University Dresden, Dresden, Germany

    Tom Bschor

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Correspondence to Tom Bschor.

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Bschor, T. Lithium in the Treatment of Major Depressive Disorder. Drugs 74, 855–862 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40265-014-0220-x

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