Exploring Therapeutic Advances for Bipolar Disorder With Mixed Features and Anxious Distress: An Update for Pharmacists
Episode 1, Jul 16, 05:48 PM
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Adults with chronic behavioral health illnesses, such as bipolar disorder, face many challenges and barriers in receiving appropriate health care services and treatment. Complicating the management of bipolar disorder is its presentation with mixed features, including comorbid anxiety, or concurrent symptoms of depression and mania/hypomania. This activity reviews diagnostic criteria for bipolar disorder with mixed features as well as treatment challenges that include a limited patient response to available therapies and a risk for mood switching with therapies that are targeted towards only one set of symptoms. It is important for pharmacists to be familiar with current treatment guideline recommendations for the treatment of bipolar disorder with mixed features and to be able to differentiate between antipsychotic therapy options, including their safety and efficacy profiles. This article provides practical information that pharmacists can refer to when counseling patients with bipolar disorder on drug administration and expectations, providing recommendations for optimizing adherence and addressing missed doses, minimizing potential drug interactions, and managing common adverse effects.
Adults with chronic behavioral health illnesses, such as bipolar disorder, face many challenges and barriers in receiving appropriate health care services and treatment. Complicating the management of bipolar disorder is its presentation with mixed features, including comorbid anxiety, or concurrent symptoms of depression and mania/hypomania. This activity reviews diagnostic criteria for bipolar disorder with mixed features as well as treatment challenges that include a limited patient response to available therapies and a risk for mood switching with therapies that are targeted towards only one set of symptoms. It is important for pharmacists to be familiar with current treatment guideline recommendations for the treatment of bipolar disorder with mixed features and to be able to differentiate between antipsychotic therapy options, including their safety and efficacy profiles. This article provides practical information that pharmacists can refer to when counseling patients with bipolar disorder on drug administration and expectations, providing recommendations for optimizing adherence and addressing missed doses, minimizing potential drug interactions, and managing common adverse effects.