ABSTRACT
The first report of the use of an anticonvulsant (i.e. valpromide, the amide prodrug of valproate) for manic depressive illness was published by Lambert and colleagues (1966). Dalby (1971) reported mood altering properties of carbamazepine in patients with epilepsy; Takezaki and Hanaoka (1971) around the same time described the use of cabamazepine in 10 acute manic patients with seven of these showing marked to moderate improvement in symptoms. Ballenger and Post (1978) conducted and reported the results of the first double-blind study that examined the efficacy of an anticonvulsant in bipolar disorder. The interest in studying of anticonvulsants was to some extent fueled by increasing recognition and awareness of the limitations of lithium for treating bipolar disorder.
