Introduction: The Role of Anticonvulsants as Mood Stabilizers

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The proceedings of this recent symposium highlight clinically important new evidence in 3 areas of bipolar disorder. Calabrese and associates provide converging evidence that rapid cycling is more common than generally recognized, marked primarily by recurrent depression, and that lithium or lithium and valproate, while quite beneficial for mania, are insufficiently or modestly effective for depression in rapid cycling. New evidence that lamotrigine may be especially beneficial for depression in rapid cycling is reviewed.