Lamotrigine as prophylaxis against steroid-induced mania

Corticosteroid-Induced Psychiatric Disorders: Mechanisms, Outcomes, and Clinical Implications

Corticosteroids are extensively used in medicine for their powerful anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive effects. However, their psychiatric side effects-such as mood disturbances, anxiety, and psychosis-are significant yet often underappreciated. This review provides a comprehensive exploration of corticosteroid-induced psychiatric disorders, with a focus on their underlying mechanisms and clinical implications. We examine how corticosteroids influence the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, leading to the dysregulation of stress responses and alterations in neurotransmitter levels, particularly dopamine, serotonin, and glutamate. These changes are linked to structural abnormalities in key brain areas such as the hippocampus and amygdala, which are implicated in mood and anxiety disorders, psychosis, and conditions like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and eating disorders. This review highlights the need for healthcare providers to be vigilant in recognizing and managing corticosteroid-induced psychiatric symptoms, especially in vulnerable populations with pre-existing mental health conditions. The complex relationship between corticosteroid type, dose, duration, and mental health outcomes is explored, emphasizing the importance of personalized treatment approaches to mitigate psychiatric risks. Given the widespread use of corticosteroids, there is an urgent need for more focused research on their psychiatric side effects. This review underscores the importance of patient education and careful monitoring to ensure optimal therapeutic outcomes while minimizing mental health risks associated with corticosteroid therapy.

Steroid-induced mania in a patient with previously well-controlled organic bipolar 1-like affective disorder secondary to acquired brain injury: case report and literature review

Steroid-induced neuropsychiatric sequelae are common, and pose significant risks to people usually receiving glucocorticoids in the context of physical illness. Steroid-induced mania and hypomania are the most common of the acute complications, yet despite great progress in understandings in neurophysiology there are no recent studies which review the factors which might predict who will experience this severe complication, nor are there consensus guidelines on management. We report the unusual case of a woman in her 50s admitted to a psychiatric unit with steroid-induced mania despite compliance with two mood stabilisers, several days after the administration of a Dexamethasone and Docetaxel chemotherapy regime adjunctive to lumpectomy for breast cancer. She had previously been diagnosed with an organic affective disorder (with classical bipolar 1 pattern) following severe ventriculitis related to ventricular drain insertion for obstructive hydrocephalus secondary to a colloid cyst. She had no psychiatric illness before this brain injury, but has a maternal history of idiopathic bipolar 1 affective disorder. Her episode of steroid-induced mania resolved following use of sedative medications, continuation of her existing mood stabilisers, and reductions of the steroid dosing in collaboration with her oncology team, which also protected her from further manic relapses during continued chemotherapy. Established mental illness, a family history, and acquired brain injury may reflect risk factors for steroid-induced mania through currently unclear pathways. Future epidemiological studies could better confirm these observations, and basic neuroscience may look to further explore the role of extrinsic glucocorticoids in the pathophysiology of affective disorders.

Corticosteroids and mania: A systematic review

OBJECTIVES

Corticosteroids are widely prescribed for a variety of medical conditions. Accumulating evidence suggests that their use may be associated with adverse psychiatric effects, including mania. In this systematic review, we aim to critically evaluate the existing literature on the association between corticosteroid use and the emergence of mania.

METHODS

We conducted a comprehensive search of major electronic databases (PubMed, Embase, Cochrane Library) for relevant studies published up to the date of the search (12th January 2023). Inclusion criteria involve studies that investigate the association between corticosteroid use and the emergence of mania in adult patients. The primary outcome is the prevalence of (hypo)mania following corticosteroid administration. Secondary outcomes include potential risk factors, dose-response relationships, and differences among various corticosteroid formulations.

RESULTS

The identified studies were subjected to a systematic selection process and data extraction by an independent reviewer. A total of 47 articles met the inclusion criteria for our systematic review.

CONCLUSION

Our findings suggest that mania is a common side-effect of corticosteroid use, particularly in prednisone equivalent doses above 40 mg. These findings hold practical significance for clinicians and provide insights into potential interventions, including careful monitoring, dose adjustments, and consideration of psychotropic medications when managing corticosteroid-induced mania.

Intravenous pulse methylprednisolone and corticosteroid-induced psychiatric disorders: A retrospective study

OBJECTIVE

Corticosteroids can cause psychiatric symptoms known as corticosteroid-induced psychiatric disorders (CIPDs). Little is known regarding the relationship between intravenous pulse methylprednisolone (IVMP) and CIPDs. Therefore, we aimed to examine the relationship between corticosteroid use and CIPDs in this retrospective study.

METHODS

Patients who were prescribed corticosteroids during their hospitalization at a university hospital and referred to our consultation-liaison service were selected. Patients diagnosed with CIPDs according to the ICD-10 codes were included. The incidence rates were compared between patients receiving IVMP and those receiving any other corticosteroid treatment. The association between IVMP and CIPDs was examined by classifying patients with CIPD into three groups according to the use of IVMP and timing of CIPD onset.

RESULTS

Of the 14,585 patients who received corticosteroids, 85 were diagnosed with CIPDs, with an incidence rate of 0.6%. Among the 523 patients who received IVMP, the incidence rate of CIPDs was 6.1% (n = 32), which was significantly higher than that in patients receiving any other corticosteroid treatment. Among the patients with CIPDs, 12 (14.1%) developed CIPDs during IVMP, 19 (22.4%) developed CIPDs after IVMP, and 49 (57.6%) developed CIPDs without IVMP. There was no significant difference in the doses at the time of CIPD improvement among the three groups when we excluded one patient whose CIPD improved during IVMP.

CONCLUSION

Patients receiving IVMP were more likely to develop CIPDs than those who did not receive IVMP. Furthermore, corticosteroid doses at the time of improvement of CIPDs were constant, regardless of IVMP use.

[Homicide and acute cortico-induced psychosis: A case report]

BACKGROUND

Since their commercialization in 1950, the first psychiatric side effects of steroids have been reported. Today, steroids have become an important therapeutic tool in many diseases, but pharmacological mechanisms responsible for their side effects are still little known. The neuropsychiatric side effects concern 15% of patients while severe reactions occur in 5% of cases, mostly as acute psychotic episodes such as delusion. Serious forensic risks in this context are poorly documented and underestimated.

CASE REPORT

We report the case of a 77 year-old man, treated by methylprednisolone for chronic lymphoid leukemia. After two months of treatment, although stabilized for the neoplastic disease, he stabbed his wife to death with a knife. In the emergency unit, an acute delirious state, a disorganization syndrome, and confusion items such as amnesia, disorientation and symptomatology fluctuation were observed. Mr. M also presented with hyponatremia and infectious pneumonia. Steroids were stopped and his condition rapidly declined, he died one month later during the hospitalization.

DISCUSSION

This clinical case underlines the importance of the early detection of steroid psychosis and its management. Treatment should not be stopped brutally and a dose reducing strategy should be applied in combination with a mood stabilizer or antipsychotic treatment. Disease management strategies are insufficiently documented to be recommended. The extremely acute onset of the symptoms, a partial insight into delusions, a history of iatrogenic neuropsychiatry, the existence of somatic precipitating disorders and confusion factors should always alert the practitioner. The patient, and eventually his family circle, must be aware of the risks of adverse psychiatric effects of steroids for both ethical and forensic reasons, and must report them as early as possible to the clinician if they occur.

Steroid psychosis: a review for neurosurgeons

Steroids are beneficial in neurological illness, but have many serious side effects. Having observed several patients with severe steroid psychoses, which greatly prolonged their hospitalizations, the authors sought to improve understanding of this entity. A literature review was conducted. The incidence of severe psychiatric symptoms was estimated in a meta-analysis of 2,555 patients to be 5.7 % and the incidence of any psychiatric symptoms was 18.6 % in patients receiving >80 mg/day of prednisone (12 mg/day dexamethasone). Dose is not predictive of time of onset, severity, type, or duration of symptoms. Symptoms can develop rapidly following exposure to even low doses and with oral, epidural, or intra-articular administration. Glucocorticoid effects on the brain fall into three categories: genomic, non-genomic, and neurotrophic/neurotoxic and can be permanent. Excessive glucocorticoid exposure may result in decreased production of endogenous neurosteroid molecules, resulting in unopposed glucocorticoid effects. Treatment includes early recognition, steroid withdrawal when appropriate, reduction in stimulation, and medication. Atypical antipsychotics like olanzapine and risperidone may cause fewer dystonic reactions and extrapyramidal symptoms than typical antipsychotics like haloperidol, and therefore, are often recommended as first line treatment. Steroids are powerful medications with many undesirable side effects. They should be used with caution. More research is needed on their effects on the human central nervous system.

Psychiatric complications of treatment with corticosteroids: review with case report

Corticosteroids are widely used in modern medicine but can result in troubling psychiatric side-effects. Physicians and other medical professionals should be aware of the potential for these side-effects, possible means of prevention, and efficacious treatments. Herein, we review adult case report data published during the past quarter-century on adverse corticosteroid-induced psychiatric effects, and present a case of corticosteroid-induced psychotic depression. PubMed and PsychLit databases were searched using the terms 'corticosteroids', 'steroids', and the generic names of corticosteroid medications with terms for psychiatric symptoms or syndromes, including psychosis, mania, hypomania, depression, apathy, anxiety, panic, depersonalization, delirium, confusion, hallucinations, delusions, paranoia, cognitive impairment and dementia. Fifty-five cases and a number of clinical trials investigating the incidence and treatment of these psychiatric symptoms and syndromes were identified. Data on incidence, drug dose, risk factors, course of illness and treatment (when present) were tabulated. We conclude that the cumulative data indicate that psychiatric complications of corticosteroid treatment are not rare and range from clinically significant anxiety and insomnia, to severe mood and psychotic disorders, delirium and dementia. While tapering or discontinuation of the corticosteroid treatment may remedy these adverse side-effects, psychotropic medications are often required because of the medical necessity of the corticosteroid or the severity of the psychiatric symptom. Further studies are needed to better understand the deleterious psychiatric effects associated with corticosteroids.

Central nervous system effects of natural and synthetic glucocorticoids

Natural glucocorticoids (NGC) physiologically modulate body homeostasis and coordinate adaptive responses to stress, involving almost all organs and tissues, including brain. Since their therapeutic availability, synthetic GC (SGC) have been successfully prescribed for a variety of diseases. Mounting evidence, however, demonstrated pleiotropic adverse effects (AE), including central nervous system (CNS) disturbances, which are often misdiagnosed or underestimated. The aim of the present study was therefore to review and discuss the CNS effects of both NGC and SGC. A detailed search was carried out of the available literature using the PubMed (US National Library of Medicine) database. Cortisolemia plays a crucial role in control of behavior, cognition, mood, and early life programming of stress reactivity. Hypercortisolemia or SGC treatments may induce behavioral, psychic and cognitive disturbances, due to functional and, over time, structural alterations in specific brain target areas. These AE are generally dose and time dependent (infrequent at prednisone-equivalent doses <20 mg/day) and usually reversible. Pediatric patients are particularly susceptible. Behavioral changes, including feeding and sleeping modifications, are common. Psychic AE are unpredictable and heterogeneous, usually mild/moderate, severe in 5-10% of cases. Manic symptoms have been mostly associated with short SGC courses, and depressive disorder with long-term treatments. Suicidality has been reported. Cognitive AE peculiarly affect declarative memory performance. Physiologic levels of NGC are essential for efficient brain functions. Otherwise, hypercortisolemia and SGC treatments may cause dose-/time-dependent neuropsychic AE and, over time, structural alterations in brain target areas. Clinicians should carefully monitor patients, especially children and/or when administering high doses SGC.

Psychiatric adverse effects of corticosteroids

Psychiatric adverse effects during systemic corticosteroid therapy are common. Two large meta-analyses found that severe reactions occurred in nearly 6% of patients, and mild to moderate reactions occurred in about 28%. Although disturbances of mood, cognition, sleep, and behavior as well as frank delirium or even psychosis are possible, the most common adverse effects of short-term corticosteroid therapy are euphoria and hypomania. Conversely, long-term therapy tends to induce depressive symptoms. Dosage is directly related to the incidence of adverse effects but is not related to the timing, severity, or duration of these effects. Neither the presence nor the absence of previous reactions predicts adverse responses to subsequent courses of corticosteroids. Corticosteroid-induced symptoms frequently present early in a treatment cycle and typically resolve with dosage reduction or discontinuation of corticosterolds. In severe cases or situations in which the dose cannot be reduced, antipsychotics or mood stabilizers may be required. This review offers an approach to identifying and managing corticosteroid-induced psychiatric syndromes based on the type of symptoms and anticipated duration of corticosteroid treatment.

An open-label trial of olanzapine for corticosteroid-induced mood symptoms

BACKGROUND

Prescription corticosteroids are given for a variety of common medical conditions. Psychiatric symptoms including depression, psychosis, and especially mania are common side effects of corticosteroid therapy. However, minimal data are available on the treatment of corticosteroid-induced psychiatric symptoms.

METHOD

In this study, 12 outpatients with manic or mixed symptoms secondary to corticosteroids were enrolled in a 5-week prospective, open-label trial of olanzapine. Psychiatric symptom measures included the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression (HRSD), Young Mania Rating Scale (YMRS), and Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS). Side effects were monitored with the Simpson Angus Scale (SAS), Abnormal Involuntary Movement Scale (AIMS), and Barnes Akathisia Scale (BAS). Weight and blood glucose were obtained at baseline and exit. Olanzapine dosing was flexible beginning at 2.5 mg/day and titrated upward as necessary to a maximum dose of 20 mg/day. Data were analyzed with Wilcoxon signed rank tests using baseline and exit data on all 12 participants.

RESULTS

Participants showed significant reductions in YMRS (primary outcome measure), HRSD, and BPRS scores with no significant change in the SAS, AIMS, BAS, weight, or blood glucose levels. One participant discontinued early due to lack of efficacy.

CONCLUSION

These data suggest that olanzapine is well tolerated and appears to be useful for mood disturbances associated with corticosteroid therapy. Controlled trials seem warranted to confirm these observations.

Effect of lamotrigine on mood and cognition in patients receiving chronic exogenous corticosteroids

Mood changes, cognitive deficits, and psychosis have been reported during corticosteroid therapy. However, minimal data are available on the treatment of these side effects. This pilot study examined the effect of 12 weeks of open-label lamotrigine treatment (dose: mean=340 mg/day, SD=65) on mood and cognition in five patients receiving prescription corticosteroids continuously for at least 6 months before study entry. The participants showed significant improvement in cognition with lamotrigine. Two subjects who met criteria for a current major depressive episode at baseline had baseline-to-exit reductions in scores on the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale of more than 20 points. These pilot data suggest that lamotrigine may be associated with improved mood and performance on cognitive tasks in steroid-treated patients. Larger controlled trials are needed to confirm these preliminary findings.

Newer antiepileptic drugs in bipolar disorder: rationale for use and role in therapy

Antiepileptic drugs (AEDS) are used regularly in the treatment of patients with bipolar disorders. Carbamazepine and valproic acid (sodium valproate) are effective as antimanic treatments, and the success of these medications has prompted investigation of other AEDs as possible treatments in patients with mood disorders. Lamotrigine appears to be the most promising of the newer AEDs with respect to effects in mood disorders. Current evidence suggests efficacy of this drug both as monotherapy and as an adjunctive agent in bipolar depression, and studies are underway to clarify its efficacy in mood stabilisation and rapid cycling, as currently available data are equivocal. Use of gabapentin is not as well supported in the literature, although data from open trials using it as an adjunctive agent suggest that it may be helpful in patients with bipolar depression. There have been some open trials and case reports supporting the use of topiramate as an adjunctive agent for the treatment of mania; however, data from controlled trials are not yet available. Further controlled trials of lamotrigine, gabapentin or topiramate as monotherapy and adjunctive treatment are needed to clarify their potential roles in the treatment of patients with mood disorders.

Corticosteroids, immune suppression, and psychosis

The role of the immune system in psychiatric symptoms has been an area of much interest for many years. This review discusses medications and medical illnesses associated with immune system dysfunction, and their relationship to psychiatric symptoms, particularly psychosis. Medical illnesses including HIV infection, systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), and Cushing's disease are all associated with psychiatric symptoms. In addition, high dosages of prescription corticosteroids (eg, prednisone and dexamethasone) are associated with mood changes, cognitive deficits, and even psychosis. However, the role of the immune system in mediating the psychiatric disturbances with each of these conditions is not clear. Directions for further research and treatment considerations are discussed.