United States Department of Veterans Affairs
VA/DoD Clinical Practice Guidelines

Management of Bipolar Disorder (BD) in Adults (2010)

 FDA Warning/Regulatory Alert
Note from the OQSV Evidence-Based Practice: This guideline references a drug(s) for which important revised regulatory and/or warning information has been released since completion of the CPG.

Recommendation Against Continued Use: March 28, 2012 – Citalopram Hydrobromide (CELEXA®): new changes have been made to the citalopram product label, specifically: ECG and/or electrolyte monitoring should be performed in patients prescribed citalopram who have relative contraindications to citalopram use, such as in those with comorbid conditions predisposing a risk of QT prolongation; Previous label recommendations that “contraindicated” citalopram use in patients with congenital QT syndrome because of the risk for QT prolongation have been changed to less stringent terminology of “not recommended” to recognize patients with this condition who could benefit from citalopram or who cannot tolerate other alternatives; The maximum dose of citalopram remains at 20mg/day for patients greater than the age of 60 years; Citalopram should be discontinued in patients with QTc measurements persistently above 500ms.
Link to Citalopram Notice
About the CPG
The guideline is formatted as six algorithms, with annotations:
  • Module A
    - Acute Manic or Hypomanic Epidode
  • Module B
    - Acute Depressive Episode
  • Module C
    - Maintenance Phase
  • Module D
    - Pharmacotherapy Interventions
  • Module E
    - Psychosocial Interventions
  • Module F
    - Specific Recommendations for Management of Older Persons with Bipolar Disorder

Guideline Links

Related Guidelines 

Cover page of the guideline document.The guideline describes the critical decision points in the management of bipolar disorder in adults and provides clear and comprehensive evidence based recommendations incorporating current information and practices for practitioners throughout the DoD and VA Health Care systems. The guideline is intended to improve patient outcomes and local management of adult patients with bipolar disorder.

Disclaimer: This Clinical Practice Guideline is intended for use only as a tool to assist a clinician/healthcare professional and should not be used to replace clinical judgment.