A study in JAMA Psychiatry reveals another potential benefit of lithium treatment. Bipolar patients in general have a significantly higher rate of osteoporosis than the general population, for reasons that are not clear, but could have to do with treatment with antipsychotic medications, a higher rate of alcohol use and a higher rate of tobacco consumption. Thus it is noteworthy …
Lithium Long Term Effects and the Danish Psychiatric Central Registry
A series of studies providing the best data on the long term effects of lithium has been coming out of a large database of healthcare use and diagnoses called the Danish Psychiatric Central Research Register. Because healthcare is nationalized in Denmark, this register covers a huge population (everyone who ever received psychiatric treatment) and it extends back to 1970. Studies …