Prioritization of research addressing antipsychotics for adolescents and young adults with bipolar disorder

Ann Intern Med. 2014 Apr 1;160(7):492-8. doi: 10.7326/M13-2549.

Abstract

Despite a paucity of high-quality evidence about benefits and harms, antipsychotic medication use among adolescents and young adults with bipolar disorder is increasing. The Patient-Centered Outcomes Research Institute tasked the Duke Evidence Synthesis Group with creating a prioritized agenda for research in this area that would incorporate the perspectives of relevant stakeholders. We identified a list of potential evidence gaps by reviewing existing literature and engaged a diverse group of 9 stakeholders to expand and refine this list. Using a forced-ranking prioritization method, stakeholders prioritized 10 of 23 potential evidence gaps as the most pressing for future research. These evidence gaps relate to 3 areas: the comparative effectiveness of intervention strategies, the effect of antipsychotics on patient-centered outcomes, and the influence of various patient characteristics on antipsychotic effectiveness. In addition to presenting these findings, we suggest appropriate study designs for addressing the stakeholder-prioritized research questions.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Antipsychotic Agents / therapeutic use*
  • Bipolar Disorder / drug therapy*
  • Comparative Effectiveness Research
  • Evidence-Based Medicine
  • Forecasting
  • Humans
  • Patient Outcome Assessment*
  • Research Design
  • Research*
  • Young Adult

Substances

  • Antipsychotic Agents