Reactions 760 - 17 Jul 1999

SPrasterone

Mania: case reportA 51-year-old man experienced mania after he took

prasterone [dehydroepiandrosterone] 50 mg/day to increasehis energy levels. His baseline mood status may have beenmildly hypomanic.

The man noted increased energy within days of startingprasterone, but within 2 weeks his wife noticed worseningpsychomotor acceleration, insomnia, irritability andgrandiosity. Approximately 4 months after he startedprasterone, the patient required involuntary hospitalisationbecause of his worsening symptoms of mania. One weekearlier, he had decreased his dosage of prasterone to 25mg/day because of his wife’s concerns about his moodchanges.

The patient was treated with haloperidol and valproatesemisodium and his symptoms resolved over several weeks.Haloperidol was tapered and discontinued. Four months afterhis hospitalisation, the man remained on valproatesemisodium and was asymptomatic.

Author comment: ‘Further research is needed to determinethe mood effects of DHEA [dehydroepiandrosterone],including its potential risk for patients with bipolar disorder.’Kline MD, et al. Mania onset while using dehydroepiandrosterone. AmericanJournal of Psychiatry 156: 971, Jun 1999 - USA 800776785

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Reactions 17 Jul 1999 No. 7600114-9954/10/0760-0001/$14.95 Adis © 2010 Springer International Publishing AG. All rights reserved