Evidence map›Paper›PMID 30426004›Full record

SynthesisBioMed research international2018

N-Acetylcysteine for the Treatment of Psychiatric Disorders: A Review of Current Evidence.

Soo Liang Ooi, Ruth Green, Sok Cheon Pak

Open access · hybridAbstract readMeta-AnalysisSystematic Review
In one paragraph

Synthesis in BioMed research international, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 41 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
41citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
3.2field-weighted citation impact, top 6% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

41 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 98 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Trial
  3. Trial
  4. Article
  5. Review
  6. Article
  7. Review
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Review
  11. Review
  12. Article
  13. Review
  14. N-Acetylcysteine Alleviates Depressive-Like Behaviors in Adolescent EAAC1International journal of biological sciences · 2024
    Article
  15. Article
  16. Review
  17. Anti-Inflammatory Therapy as a Promising Target in Neuropsychiatric Disorders.Advances in experimental medicine and biology · 2023
    Review
  18. Review
  19. Article
  20. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Soo Liang OoiCentre for Complementary & Alternative Medicine, Singapore 247909, Singapore.ORCID 0000-0002-0534-3673
Ruth GreenSchool of Biomedical Sciences, Charles Sturt University, Bathurst, NSW 2795, Australia.
Sok Cheon PakSchool of Biomedical Sciences, Charles Sturt University, Bathurst, NSW 2795, Australia.ORCID 0000-0001-8510-5781
Charles Sturt University · AU

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

N-acetylcysteine, a sulphur-containing amino acid for the treatment of paracetamol overdose and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, is a widely available off-the-shelf oral antioxidant supplement in many countries. With the potential to modulate several neurological pathways, including glutamate dysregulation, oxidative stress, and inflammation that can be beneficial to the brain functions, N-acetylcysteine is being explored as an adjunctive therapy for many psychiatric conditions. This narrative review synthesises and presents the current evidence from systematic reviews, meta-analyses, and latest clinical trials on N-acetylcysteine for addiction and substance abuse, schizophrenia, obsessive-compulsive and related disorders, and mood disorders. Good evidence exists to support the use of N-acetylcysteine as an adjunct treatment to reduce the total and negative symptoms of schizophrenia. N-acetylcysteine also appears to be effective in reducing craving in substance use disorders, especially for the treatment of cocaine and cannabis use among young people, in addition to preventing relapse in already abstinent individuals. Effects of N-acetylcysteine on obsessive-compulsive and related disorders, as well as on mood disorders, remain unclear with mixed reviews, even though promising evidence does exist. Larger and better-designed studies are required to further investigate the clinical effectiveness of N-acetylcysteine in these areas. Oral N-acetylcysteine is safe and well tolerated without any considerable adverse effects. Current evidence supports its use as an adjunctive therapy clinically for psychiatric conditions, administered concomitantly with existing medications, with a recommended dosage between 2000 and 2400 mg/day.

Indexed as

AcetylcysteineAdministration, OralHumansMental DisordersAcetylcysteine

Identifiers

PMID30426004
PMCPMC6217900
OpenAlexW2895897802

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.