Lithium use during pregnancy in a patient with bipolar disorder and multiple sclerosis

Although lithium is widely used as a first-line treatment for mood disorders, its mood-stabilizing effects remain not fully understood. A growing body of data are stressing that lithium seems to show broader properties, including neuroprotective effects. Lithium's ability to inhibit glycogen synthase kinase 3β, an enzyme that participates in the phosphorylation of τ, a microtubule-associated protein, stimulated interest in its possible therapeutic role in Alzheimer disease and other neurodegenerative disorders. Preliminary data also support exploration of lithium's potential therapeutic role in multiple sclerosis, an autoimmune disorder that is associated with co-occurring mood disorders. Lithium is associated with teratogenic risks to the developing fetus; however, recently revised downward estimates of its teratogenic risk of causing fetal cardiac malformation suggest that its potential therapeutic benefit to both mothers with bipolar disorder and their offspring should be considered in at least some cases. A 43-year-old woman previously diagnosed with bipolar disorder and MS was treated with lithium and thyroid hormone supplementation as her sole medications during her pregnancy. The patient remained euthymic throughout her pregnancy and over the course of her 5-year follow-up evaluations on this medication regimen. In addition to her stable mood, there has been no symptomatic progression or relapse of her MS, and her daughter continues to develop normally. The case supports consideration of balancing lithium's mood-stabilizing benefit with its known teratogenic risk during pregnancy. The case also supports exploration of possible additional benefit in the context of MS co-occurring with bipolar disorder.