Endocrinology

Basal (medicine)

Insulin

Internal medicine

Psychiatry

Bipolar disorder

Medicine

Mania

Calcium

Bipolar I disorder

Calcium in biology

Lithium (medication)

Psychology

Schizophrenia (object-oriented programming)

Molecular Psychiatry

Calcium signalling has long been implicated in bipolar disorder, especially by reports of altered intracellular calcium ion concentrations ([Ca 2+ ]). However, the evidence has not been appraised critically. We carried out a systematic review and meta-analysis of studies of cellular calcium indices in bipolar disorder. 2281 records were identified and 117 screened, of which 32 were eligible and 21 were suitable for meta-analyses. The latter each involved up to 642 patients and 404 control subjects. We found that basal free intracellular [Ca 2+ ] is increased in bipolar disorder, both in platelets and in lymphocytes. The effect size is 0.55, with an estimated elevation of 29%. It is observed in medication-free patients. It is present in mania and bipolar depression, but data are equivocal for euthymia. Cells from bipolar disorder individuals also show an enhanced [Ca 2+ ] response to stimulation with 5-HT or thrombin, by an estimated 25%, with an effect size of 0.63. In studies which included other diagnoses, ...

Cellular calcium in bipolar disorder: systematic review and meta-analysis