Review articleAntibiotics and mania: A systematic review

- Antibiotic-induced mania or antibiomania is a rare and idiosyncratic phenomenon.
- Statements regarding incidence or antibiotic-specific warnings cannot be made.
- Possible pathophysiological mechanisms are discussed.

ObjectivesMania can occur secondary to a medical condition and can be elicited by various pharmacological treatments, both in patients with or without a history of affective disorder. Antibiotic-induced mania or antibiomania is suggested to be a rare phenomenon. We reviewed the literature in order to collect published reports of antibiomania and to summarize new insights about its mechanism and management.MethodsWe performed a MEDLINE-search and used manual cross-referencing for reports of antibiotic-induced mania and included cases in which a (hypo)manic episode was diagnosed in close temporal relationship with the prescription of an antibiotic.Results47 cases were published. Patients' ages ranged from 3 to 77 years (mean 40). Two-thirds of the cases were male. Twelve different anti-bacterial agents were implicated, with antitubercular agents, macrolides and quinolones being the most common causative groups.ConclusionsAntibiotic treatment can be associated with (hypo)mania. The paucity of reported cases precludes statements regarding incidence or antibiotic-specific warnings. In the event of an antibiotic-induced mania, the suspicious drug should be discontinued and manic symptoms can be treated lege artis. The pathophysiological mechanism of antibiomania remains elusive.