Treatment Guidelines for Bipolar Disorder (3 CE)

Number of Credits: 3

This course is for: Clinical Psychologists, Counselors, Counselors, and Marriage & Family Therapists

Course By: Ken Springer, PhD and Kristin Ceppaluni, LMHC

Content By: Yatham, L. N.,  Kennedy, S. H., Parikh, S. V., Schaffer, A., Bond, D. J., Frey, B. N., Sharma, V., Goldstein, B. I., Rej, S., Beaulieu, S., Alda, M., MacQueen, G. M., Milev, R. V., Ravindran, A., O'Donovan, C., McIntosh, D., Lam, R. W., Vazquez, G., Kapczinski, F., McIntyre, R. S., Kozicky, J., Kanba, S., Lafer, B., Suppes, T., Calabrese, J. R., Vieta, E., Malhi, G., Post, R. M., & Berk, M. (2018). 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 Disorders, 20, 97-170. https://doi.org/10.1111/bdi.12609

Course Description: This article presents treatment guidelines for bipolar disorder (BD) revised in 2018 by the Canadian Network for Mood and Anxiety Treatments (CANMAT) and the International Society for Bipolar Disorders (ISBD). The 2018 CANMAT and ISBD Bipolar Treatment Guidelines provide clinicians with updated principles for the diagnosis and management of BD, along with a comprehensive synthesis of research on treatments. This research evidence is translated into clear recommendations concerning the effectiveness, safety, and tolerability of various treatments for BD. First-, second-, and third-line treatments are distinguished for each phase of the disorder, along with a "not recommended" category of treatments that studies have shown to be ineffective.

 The 2018 CANMAT and ISBD Bipolar Treatment Guidelines are presented in eight sections. Following the introduction, the second section discusses the foundations of management, including epidemiology, diagnostic assessment, suicide risk, chronic disease management, stigma, and a range of psychosocial interventions. The third through fifth sections focus on acute management of bipolar mania, acute management of bipolar I depression, and maintenance therapy for bipolar I disorder. The sixth section discusses management of bipolar II disorder. The seventh section considers management of BD in  specific populations (women at different stages of the reproductive cycle, children and adolescents, older adults, and individuals with comorbidities). The final section addresses safety and monitoring for patients receiving recommended treatments.

Learning Objectives:

1. Understand the background, organization, and intent of the 2018 CANMAT and ISBD Bipolar Treatment Guidelines
2. Summarize the foundations of management presented in the second section of the guidelines
3. Synthesize the recommendations for acute management of bipolar mania and bipolar depression, as well as maintenance therapy for BD, as presented in the third through fifth sections of the guidelines
4. Synthesize the recommendations for management of bipolar II disorder presented in the sixth section of the guidelines
5. Summarize the recommendations for management of BD in specific populations, as well as for the safety and monitoring of all patients receiving recommended treatments, as presented in the seventh and eighth sections of the guidelines

Course Outline:

• Read and understand 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
• Review the Course Description and Learning Objectives
• Understand how and why the 2018 CANMAT and ISBD Bipolar Treatment Guidelines were developed and revised
• Understand the organization of the guidelines and the types of information presented in each section
• Summarize the evidence, principles, and recommendations presented in the second section with respect to epidemiology, diagnosis, monitoring of suicide risk, chronic disease management, dealing with stigma, and treatment by means of psychosocial interventions
• Synthesize the evidence, principles and recommendations concerning acute management of bipolar mania presented in the third section
• Synthesize the evidence, principles and recommendations concerning acute management of bipolar depression presented in the fourth section
• Synthesize the evidence, principles and recommendations concerning maintenance therapy for BD presented in the fifth section
• Synthesize the evidence, principles and recommendations concerning acute management as well as maintenance therapy for bipolar disorder II presented in the sixth section
• Distinguish among the evidence, principles, and recommendations for management of BD among women at different stages of the reproductive cycle, children and adolescents, older adults, and individuals with comorbidities, as presented in the seventh section
• Summarize the evidence, principles, and recommendations for monitoring and promoting the safety of patients receiving recommended treatments for BD, as presented in the eight section
• Revisit the article for any missed questions and/or to better understand the 2018 CANMAT and ISBD Bipolar Treatment Guidelines

Approvals: