Posted by ed_uk on March 24, 2005, at 13:07:23
In reply to Re: GP benzo prescribing lowers PCT star rating (UK), posted by Nickengland on March 24, 2005, at 10:38:13
Hi Nick!
>I think i will forget the whole idea of trying to get one now, after all I wouldn't want more problems than I already have and sometimes I think its best to take as little medication as possible.
If you suffer from severe anxiety, it can be helpful to have a few diazepam 5mg tablets to take if things get really bad.
>venlafaxine
I've also taken venlafaxine. The doctors always underestimate the withdrawal, they tell you it's really mild and insignificant!
>I think im going to take the route of seeing if I can get trileptal and gabapentin to help with the anxiety.
Sounds good. Don't start them both at the same time though or else you won't know what's helping!! Do you think you might be giving up on carbamazepine too early?
>Which kind of data would be a good idea to show the psychiatrist with regards to going for the trileptal?
Type oxcarbazepine and bipolar into the search box on PubMed and print out some abstracts.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?
Here is an example of an abstract..........
Int J Neuropsychopharmacol. 2004 Dec;7(4):507-22. Epub 2004 Sep 30.
A review of the evidence for carbamazepine and oxcarbazepine in the treatment of bipolar disorder.
Hirschfeld RM, Kasper S.
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, TX 77555-0188, USA. rohirsch@utmb.edu
Bipolar disorder is a recurrent lifelong condition associated with significant morbidity and mortality. The main goals of treatment are the acute management of manic/depressive episodes and the prevention of recurrence. Mood stabilizers are the basis of most treatment regimens. Although lithium is the classical mood stabilizer, dissatisfaction with its efficacy and tolerability has led to increased use of other mood- stabilizing agents, including anticonvulsants. Newer anticonvulsants such as oxcarbazepine may offer improved tolerability and fewer drug-drug interactions compared to older drugs like carbamazepine. A search of the literature shows that data from controlled clinical studies support the efficacy of carbamazepine in treating acute mania and as maintenance therapy. In addition, a growing body of data for oxcarbazepine suggests that this newer agent may have a similar efficacy profile to carbamazepine, with improved tolerability. This review presents a balanced selection of the key studies on carbamazepine and oxcarbazepine in bipolar disorder.
>Im from the south-east, Essex. How about you?
I'm from Yorkshire but I'm living in Manchester at the moment.
Kind regards,
Ed.
poster:ed_uk
thread:473135
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20050322/msgs/474990.html