[High-dose fluoxetine-induced mania. Review and case report]

Abstract

We report the case of a 53 year old woman who attempted suicide taking one high-dose of fluoxetine, developing a manic episode 19 days later. We also make a review about antidepressant-induced mania. In patients with mood disorder, the frequency of antidepressant-induced mania switch has been estimated to be 3.7 to 33%, varying across studies that included different diagnoses and different antidepressant treatments. Among the used data basis (Medline) there are papers reporting fluoxetine-induced mania. All of them include patients receiving adequate dose and time fluoxetine treatment. We found no reports of switch occurring after one high-dose of fluoxetine. As the impact on the clinical management of antidepressant-induced manic switches is quite high, several studies have focused on the possible clinical predictors of this phenomenon. By the time, is not possible to determine whether a manic episode is due to the natural course of bipolar disorder or to the medication. Thus, the phenomenon of antidepressant-induced mania should be defined and investigated with controlled prospective studies.