The role of eugeroics in the treatment of affective disorders

Abstract

Eugeroics are a relatively new class of wakefulness-promoting agents. The group includes adrafinil, modafinil and armodafinil. Modafinil is the most widely used and the best studied agent. Indications for the use of modafinil include the treatment of narcolepsy, shift-work sleep disorders and excessive daytime sleepiness associated with obstructive sleep apnea. Many studies show the utility of modafinil and armodafinil in the treatment of depression - both in monotherapy and as potentiation therapy if needed. Modafinil has proven to be effective in the treatment of residual symptoms of unipolar and bipolar depression such as fatigue, excessive sleepiness and some cognitive impairment. Research on armodafinil points to its effectiveness mainly in augmentation therapy of depression in the course of bipolar disorder. There are also reports on the effectiveness of eugeroics in special cases - seasonal depression, atypical depression with hyperphagia, apathy in the course of depression or as an isolated symptom, cancer-related fatigue in patients receiving chemotherapy, fatigue and excessive sleepiness in neurological diseases. Eugeroics due to their high selectivity of action in the CNS have a low addictive potential compared with other stimulants. The risk of manic switch is comparable to placebo. In general, they are well-tolerated and safe. The purpose of this paper is to review the literature on the use of eugeroics in the treatment of affective disorders.