Case report, 1985
Does blood lithium level change with menstrual cycle mood changes?
Yes. This single woman showed that her blood lithium level changed in sync with her mood swings: highest during depression, lowest during hypomania, even though she took the same dose every day.
What they did
Followed one 28-year-old woman who had premenstrual mood cycling (starting with a hypomania phase, then depression that improved when menstruation came). She took a constant daily dose of lithium. Measured her blood lithium levels, red blood cell lithium, and urine lithium.
What they found
Her blood lithium was highest at 1.10 mmol/l during her most intense depression and lowest at 0.30 mmol/l during hypomania. During normal mood, it stayed around 0.5 mmol/l. Her red blood cell lithium and urine lithium followed the same pattern.
What it means for you
How the body handles lithium changes with mood states, and mood changes linked to menstruation affect how much lithium stays in the blood. This suggests doctors may need to monitor lithium levels more carefully in women with menstrual mood changes. This is one case only, so we don't know if other women have the same pattern.
1.10 mmol/l
highest level in depression
0.30 mmol/l
lowest level in hypomania
16.2 mmol/l
daily lithium dose
About the study
- Original title
- The influence of mania and depression on the pharmacokinetics of lithium. A longitudinal single-case study
- Authors
- Kukopoulos A, Minnai G, Müller-Oerlinghausen B
- Journal
- Journal of affective disorders
- Year
- 1985
- Study design
- Case report
- What was tested
- Lithium (a mood stabilizer) at a constant dose
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1016/0165-0327(85)90039-4
Topics
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