The mechanism of action of the mood stabilizing agents discussed on the slide are not entirely understood.4 Mood stabilizing agents may have effects on the inositol uptake process, and can modulate the balance of GABA–glutamate signalling in the brain.4 It is this pharmacology that is thought to at least partly underly the efficacy of mood stabilizers in bipolar disorder.4
References:
1. McCormick U, Murray B, McNew B. Diagnosis and treatment of patients with bipolar disorder: a review for advanced practice nurses. J Am Assoc Nurse Pract 2015; 27 (9): 530–542.
2. McIntyre RS, Berk M, Brietzke E, et al. Bipolar disorders. Lancet 2020; 396 (10265): 1841–1856.
3. Yatham LN, Kennedy SH, Parikh SV, et al. Canadian Network for Mood and Anxiety Treatments (CANMAT) and International Society for Bipolar Disorders (ISBD) 2018 guidelines for the management of patients with bipolar disorder. Bipolar Disord 2018; 20 (2): 97–170.
4. Nath M, Gupta V. Mood stabilizers. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2024. Available at: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/ NBK556141/. Accessed February 2024.