Seroquel, new data provides evidence for improvement in anxiety in bipolar depression

AstraZeneca announced important new data presented today at the 24th Collegium Internationale Neuro-Psychopharmacologicum (CINP) meeting in Paris, which show that patients with bipolar depression who are treated with SEROQUEL (quetiapine) experience significant improvement in symptoms of anxiety associated with this stage of the disorder, from as early as the first week of treatment.1


The data from the study show SEROQUEL to be significantly more effective than placebo and well tolerated for the treatment of anxiety symptoms in bipolar depression. Furthermore, the data show that SEROQUEL works quickly to reduce the symptoms of anxiety, having a significant effect on symptoms within the first week of treatment and continuing to improve symptoms throughout the 8 weeks of treatment.1


These new data presented today are from the large-scale, multi-centred, BOLDER trial presented last month at the157th American Psychiatric Association (APA) meeting, which found SEROQUEL to be an effective and well-tolerated agent for the treatment of depressive symptoms associated with bipolar disorder.2


"Many patients with bipolar depression experience intense anxiety, and sometimes this is more disturbing than the depressive symptoms. Symptoms of anxiety are known to be associated with suicide attempts in bipolar disorder. Indeed, anxiety symptoms are frequently the reason why patients seek treatment in the first place.


Therefore, it is important for medications that work in bipolar depression to be effective treatments for anxiety, and that they work quickly and effectively," commented Dr Joseph Calabrese, Co-Director of the National Institute of Mental Health Bipolar Research Center at University Hospitals of Cleveland and Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, and lead trial investigator. "These data demonstrate that with SEROQUEL, psychiatrists have a potential new treatment for bipolar depression, that is effective and works quickly for both depression and anxiety symptoms."


The BOLDER trial was an 8 week, multi-centred, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled study involving 542 patients with a diagnosis of bipolar I or II disorder. Patients received 300mg/day SEROQUEL or 600mg/day SEROQUEL, or placebo. The results of this trial showed:


-- Patients taking SEROQUEL 600 mg/day and 300mg/day had a significantly greater improvement (p







-- Patients receiving SEROQUEL experienced a broad improvement across most items of the HAM-A scale. Significant improvement was observed after 8 weeks treatment in the following items: anxious mood, depressed mood, insomnia (p