SynthesisPloS one2020
Bright light therapy in the treatment of patients with bipolar disorder: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Synthesis in PloS one, 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
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.
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, 33 citations in OpenAlex.
- Circadian light therapy and light dose for depressed young people: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Frontiers in public health · 2023Pooled it
- Reducing Test Anxiety: A Randomized Controlled Pilot Study of Evening Bright Light Exposure in University Students.Depression and anxiety · 2025Trial
- The Regulatory Potential of Long Non-Coding RNAs in Bipolar Disorder.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Review
- Bright Light Therapy in Psychiatric Disorders: Mechanisms, Clinical Procedures and Evidence.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 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
- Different Protocols of Circadian Rhythm Disruptions Differentially Affect Locomotor Activity, and Anxiety- and Compulsive-Like Behaviors in Male vs. Female Wistar Rats along with the Significant Involvement of GSK-3β in Females.Molecular neurobiology · 2025Article
- Combination Therapy Against Mood and Anxiety Disorders: Association Between Efficacy and White Blood Cell Count.Neuropsychiatric disease and treatment · 2025Article
- Role of adjunctive nonpharmacological strategies for treatment of rapid-cycling bipolar disorder.World journal of psychiatry · 2023Review
- Antidepressant effect of bright light therapy on patients with Alzheimer's disease and their caregivers.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2023Article
- Psychopharmacological Treatment Algorithms of Manic/Mixed and Depressed Episodes in Pediatric Bipolar Disorder.Journal of child and adolescent psychopharmacology · 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
- The Interplay between Housing Environmental Attributes and Design Exposures and Psychoneuroimmunology Profile-An Exploratory Review and Analysis Paper in the Cancer Survivors' Mental Health Morbidity Context.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Review
- Circadian disruption and human health.The Journal of clinical investigation · 2021Review
- Variations in seasonal solar insolation are associated with a history of suicide attempts in bipolar I disorder.International journal of bipolar disorders · 2021Article
- Enlightened: addressing circadian and seasonal changes in photoperiod in animal models of bipolar disorder.Translational psychiatry · 2021Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
6 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
The treatment of depressive symptoms of bipolar disorder (BD) has received increasing attention. Recently, some studies have shown that bright light therapy (BLT) seems to be useful for BD depression. This meta-analysis is intended to further elucidate the role of BLT in depressive symptoms in patients with BD. Register of Systematic Reviews PROSPERO: CRD 420191 33642.Randomized controlled trials and cohort studies were retrieved in PubMed, Cochrane Library, EMbase, Web of Science, CINHAL, CBM, CNKI, VIP, and Wanfang from their foundation to March 2020, and other sources as supplement was also retrieved. Data were extracted after strict evaluation of literature quality by two researchers, and Meta-analysis was conducted on literatures that met the inclusion criteria. Meta-analysis was performed using Revman 5.3 software. In total, 12 studies including 847 patients with BD depression were included in our meta-analysis. A meta-analysis found significant differences between BLT and placebo for the following outcomes: (1) depression severity before and after BLT [SMD = -0.43, 95% CI (-0.73,-0.13), P<0.05] in RCT and [SMD = -2.12, 95% CI (-2.3,-1.94), P<0.05] in cohort studies.; (2) the efficacy of duration/timing of light therapy for depressive symptoms in BD [I2 = 85%, SMD = -1.88, 95% CI (-2.04, -1.71),P<0.05] and [I2 = 71%, SMD = -2.1,95% CI(-2.24, -1.96), P<0.05]; (3) the efficacy of different color/color temperatures for depressive symptoms in BD [I2 = 0%, SMD = -0.56, 95% CI (-0.92, -0.19), P<0.05] and [I2 = 97%, SMD = -1.74, 95% CI (-1.99, -1.49), P<0.05].We performed a subgroup meta-analysis of studies that used different light intensities. The results showed that light intensity≥5000 lux significantly reduced the severity of depression. And patients without psychotropic drugs revealed significantly decreased disease severity [I2 = 0%, SMD = -0.6, 95% CI (-1.06,-0.13), P<0.05]. Limitations of the study include studies only assessed short-term effects, and insufficient duration may underestimate adverse reactions and efficacy. Our results highlight the significant efficiency of BLT in the treatment of bipolar depression. Prospective studies with more rigorous design and consistent follow-up.
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Registered trials
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.