SynthesisPsychiatry and clinical neurosciences2020
Efficacy and safety of bright light therapy for manic and depressive symptoms in patients with bipolar disorder: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in Psychiatry and clinical neurosciences, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 16 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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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.
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.
Who cites it
16 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Bright light therapy in the treatment of patients with bipolar disorder: A systematic review and meta-analysis.PloS one · 2020Pooled it
- Reducing Test Anxiety: A Randomized Controlled Pilot Study of Evening Bright Light Exposure in University Students.Depression and anxiety · 2025Trial
- Bright Light Therapy in Psychiatric Disorders: Mechanisms, Clinical Procedures and Evidence.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Physical factor therapies for insomnia: a narrative review of mechanisms, clinical evidence, and phenotype-guided applications.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2026Review
- Light therapy for bipolar disorders: Clinical recommendations from the international society for bipolar disorders (ISBD) Chronobiology and Chronotherapy Task Force.Dialogues in clinical neuroscience · 2025Review
- The intersection of circadian rhythms and the blood-brain barrier with drug efficacy and delivery in neurological disorders.Advanced drug delivery reviews · 2025Review
- The Effect of Light on Wellbeing: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.Journal of happiness studies · 2025Review
- A pre-post trial to examine biological mechanisms of the effects of time-restricted eating on symptoms and quality of life in bipolar disorder.BMC psychiatry · 2024Article
- Human-Comparable Sensitivity of Large Language Models in Identifying Eligible Studies Through Title and Abstract Screening: 3-Layer Strategy Using GPT-3.5 and GPT-4 for Systematic Reviews.Journal of medical Internet research · 2024Article
- A randomized controlled trial to compare the effects of time-restricted eating versus Mediterranean diet on symptoms and quality of life in bipolar disorder.BMC psychiatry · 2024Article
- Role of adjunctive nonpharmacological strategies for treatment of rapid-cycling bipolar disorder.World journal of psychiatry · 2023Review
- Does circadian dysrhythmia drive the switch into high- or low-activation states in bipolar I disorder?Bipolar disorders · 2023Review
- Efficacy and safety of adjunctive therapy to lamotrigine, lithium, or valproate monotherapy in bipolar depression: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.International journal of bipolar disorders · 2022Review
- Therapeutic Interventions to Mitigate Mitochondrial Dysfunction and Oxidative Stress-Induced Damage in Patients with Bipolar Disorder.International journal of molecular sciences · 2022Review
- Multi-Level Processes and Retina-Brain Pathways of Photic Regulation of Mood.Journal of clinical medicine · 2022Review
- Enlightened: addressing circadian and seasonal changes in photoperiod in animal models of bipolar disorder.Translational psychiatry · 2021Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
9 authors.
Funding
Abstract
aimThis systematic review and meta-analysis evaluated whether bright light therapy (BLT) is an effective and safe treatment for manic/depressive symptoms and a preventive measure for recurrent mood episodes in patients with bipolar disorder.
methodsA literature search of major electronic databases was conducted in June 2019, including all published articles up to that date. Two researchers independently selected relevant publications, extracted data, and evaluated methodological quality according to the Cochrane criteria.
resultsSix randomized controlled trials (RCT) evaluated the efficacy of BLT for bipolar depression. A meta-analysis found no significant differences between BLT and placebo for the following outcomes: (i) rates of remission from depressive episodes (risk ratio [RR]: 1.81, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.43 to 7.64, P = 0.42); (ii) depressive symptom scores (standardized mean difference: -0.25, 95%CI: -0.74 to 0.23, P = 0.30); and (iii) rates of manic switching (RR: 1.00, 95%CI: 0.28 to 3.59, P = 0.26). The sensitivity analysis for studies with low overall indirectness did show a significant antidepressant effect for BLT (RR: 3.09, 95%CI: 1.62 to 5.90, P = 0.006). No RCT investigated the effect of BLT in preventing the recurrence of mood episodes in the euthymic state or in improving manic symptoms in the manic state. No severe adverse events were reported.
conclusionWhile a meta-analysis was unable to demonstrate the efficacy of BLT for bipolar depression, a sensitivity analysis did show a significant effect. Further well-designed studies are needed to clarify the effectiveness of BLT, not only for the depressive state but also for other states, in the treatment of bipolar disorder.
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