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Improving Care for People with Bipolar Disorder In February, 2001, the National Institute of Mental Health announced a landmark study to find the best treatments for bipolar disorder. The study will involve 5,000 patients at 18 centers across the United States and will last for 5 years. A unique aspect of the study is that no patients will be given only placebo. Both medical and talk therapies will be studied. The intent of the study is to discover which of the available treatment strategies is most effective. It is already abundantly clear that bipolar disorder is treatable, and that it is therefore pointless to include placebo controls. An October, 2000 report of research at the University of Colorado showed that a program combining family support and medication helped people with bipolar disorder more than a combination of medication and treatment in the community. The results are not a surprise, but they verify our claim that "families can help," the title of one of our web pages. Families in the study received 21 counseling visits. Last updated 12/19/03 |
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