A Preliminary Study of the Effects of Treatment with Lithium Versus Quetiapine on Attention of Adolescents with Bipolar Disorder

Despite attentional deficits being a prominent feature of bipolar disorder, there are limited data on the effects of common treatments for bipolar disorder on attention. Thus, we sought to compare the effects of lithium versus quetiapine on attention in adolescents with bipolar disorder. Adolescents ages 10-17 with bipolar disorder, type I, who were experiencing a manic or mixed episode, were recruited from outpatient settings and the inpatient psychiatric units at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center during their first manic episode. Healthy comparison subjects were recruited from outreach programs in the community. Patients were randomized to lithium or quetiapine, administered in a double-dummy, double-blinded manner for 6 weeks. Attentional deficits were assessed in all groups using the Identical Pairs Continuous Performance Task at baseline and at week 6. Patients with bipolar disorder ( = 79) had impaired attention relative to the healthy group ( = 57) at both baseline and after 6 weeks of treatment. The lithium-treated group ( = 30) had poorer attentional performance than the healthy group at week 6. There was a difference in change in performance between lithium- and quetiapine-treated ( = 49) groups. Youth with bipolar disorder may have impaired attention relative to their healthy peers. Conclusions are limited by the high dropout rate in the lithium-treated group.