Maintenance of antidepressant effect of sleep deprivation with the help of lithium
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Updated: Jan 1, 2026

Author Spotlight: Unveiling the Connection Between Sleep Disorders and Cognitive Symptoms in Depression
Published on: April 26, 2024
1Department of Psychiatry, Städtisches Krankenhaus Frankfurt am Main, Federal Republic of Germany.
Abstract:
The antidepressant effect of sleep deprivation is often not longer than 1 or 2 days. Therefore we investigated systematically the combination of lithium and sleep deprivation on 26 depressive patients (ICD/DSM 296). We measured the depression scores with the Hamilton Depression Scale and the Brief Depression Rating Scale on 4 days. A comparison between sleep deprivation with and without lithium showed a highly significant difference on the 2nd and 3rd days after sleep deprivation. The positive antidepressant effect remained with those who received lithium.
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