Sleep Disturbance, Irritability, and Response to Lurasidone Treatment in Children and Adolescents with Bipolar Depression

Background The presence of mixed (subsyndromal hypomanic) symptoms may influence treatment outcomes in pediatric bipolar depression. This post-hoc analysis investigated bridge symptoms that have cross-sectional and predictive associations with depressive and manic symptom clusters in youth with bipolar depression. Methods The moderating effects of these bridge symptoms on the response to flexibly dosed lurasidone 20-80 mg/d compared to placebo treatment was analyzed in children and adolescents with bipolar I depression in a six-week, placebo-controlled, double-blind study followed by a 2-year, open-label extension study of lurasidone. Results Sleep disturbances, assessed by difficulty with sleep (Children's Depression Rating Scale, Revised [CDRS-R] item 4) and decreased need for sleep (Young Mania Rating Scale [YMRS] item 4), and irritability (CDRS-R item-8, YMRS item 5) were identified as bridge symptoms and found to have replicable causal associations with depressive (CDRS-R total) and manic symptom clusters (YMRS total) at baseline and week-6. A greater improvement in overall depression severity at week 6 with lurasidone (vs. placebo) treatment was observed in the presence (vs. absence) of decreased need for sleep at study baseline, mediated in part by significant reductions from study baseline in decreased need for sleep and manic symptom severity. The absence of sleep disturbance and irritability in patients at open-label extension study baseline was associated with higher rates of sustained recovery (symptomatic and functional remission) over 6 months compared to patients with those symptoms at baseline (68% vs. 50%, Number Needed to Treat=6). Conclusion Our findings suggest that sleep disturbance and irritability are cardinal symptoms that bridge between depressive and manic symptom clusters and influence treatment outcomes in youth with bipolar depression.

Automated summary

This study investigated the influence of mixed symptoms on treatment outcomes in pediatric bipolar depression and found that sleep disturbances and irritability are key symptoms that bridge between depressive and manic symptom clusters and influence treatment outcomes.