Quetiapine adjunctive and monotherapy for pediatric bipolar disorder: a retrospective chart review.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to assess the safety and effectiveness of quetiapine for children and adolescents with bipolar disorder when used as monotherapy or in combination with other agents.

METHODS

The outpatient medical charts of youths with a Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders-fourth edition (text revision) (DSM-IV-TR) diagnosis of bipolar disorder who were treated with quetiapine were retrospectively reviewed using the Clinical Global Impression (CGI) Scale.

RESULTS

Thirty-two patients (mean age, 10.8 +/- 3.9 years) with bipolar disorder, type I (n = 16), type II (n = 10), cyclothymia (n = 2), and bipolar not otherwise specified (NOS) (n = 4) who had been treated (mean duration, 6.1 +/- 5.9 months) openly with quetiapine (mean dose, 397.4 +/- 221.4 mg/day) were identified. Fourteen patients (43.8%) received only quetiapine. No serious adverse events occurred. Response rate (defined by a CGI-Improvement (CGI-I) score of < or =2 at end point) was 80.0% for the entire group and 78.6% for the subgroup who received quetiapine monotherapy. CGI-Severity (CGI-S) scores significantly improved from baseline to end point for both groups.

CONCLUSIONS

Preliminary results suggest that quetiapine is a safe and effective treatment for both children and adolescents with bipolar disorder when used as monotherapy or in combination with other agents.