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. 2025 Aug 23:10398562251370946.
doi: 10.1177/10398562251370946. Online ahead of print.

Antibiomania: An update

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Free article

Antibiomania: An update

Gordon Parker et al. Australas Psychiatry. .
Free article

Abstract

BackgroundAntibiomania, whereby an antibiotic induces a manic/hypomanic episode in those with or without a pre-existing bipolar condition, is a little-known phenomenon, diagnostically elusive, may be more prevalent than recognised and thus warrants the current overview.MethodRepresentative studies and clinical observations are noted.ResultsSeveral mechanistic issues are considered but with a weighting to the antibiotic causing gut dysbiosis and so activating gut-brain axis pathways that may induce manic/hypomanic episodes.ConclusionFuture studies should seek to determine the prevalence of antibiomania and whether differing antibiotics effect differential risks, while clinicians identifying such a potential linkage in a patient who has developed a first episode or recurrence of a manic/hypomanic episode should consider nuanced pre-emptive and management strategies in such instances.

Keywords: antibiotics; bipolar disorder; gut microbiome; mania.

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