Cariprazine as a Treatment Option for Depressive Episodes Associated with Bipolar 1 Disorder in Adults: An Evidence-Based Review of Recent Data

Abstract

Depressive episodes, the most frequent episodes in bipolar disorder, contribute in large part to poor functional outcomes. Very few treatments, however, have been approved by the Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of bipolar depression. Cariprazine, a broad-spectrum dopamine antagonist/partial agonist with dopamine D3/D2 (preferring D3) and serotonin 5-HT1A receptor partial agonist properties, was recently approved. A review of the literature suggests that it is an effective and well-tolerated treatment for bipolar depression.

Keywords:

• Cariprazine
• bipolar depression
• antipsychotics
• psychopharmacology

Acknowledgments

The author would like to thank Cameron Colbert-Olivas and Pari Noskin for their editorial review efforts.

Disclosure

Dr Tohen reports being a paid consultant from AbbVie, during the writing of this article and has been a paid consultant for AstraZeneca, Abbott, AbbVie, BMS, Lilly, GSK, J&J, Otsuka, Roche, Lundbeck, Elan, Alkermes, Allergan, Intracellular Therapies, Merck, Minerva, Neurocrine, Pamlab, Alexza, Forest, Teva, Sunovion, and Gedeon Richter. Dr Tohen was a full-time employee at Lilly (1997 to 2008).