SynthesisPsychopharmacology2022
Effectiveness and safety of intravenous valproate in agitation: a systematic review.
Synthesis in Psychopharmacology, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 5 papers.
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
5 citing papers in PubMed, 9 citations in OpenAlex.
- Observational
- Valproate-Enhanced Protocols for Alcohol Withdrawal Syndrome: A Brief Review and Retrospective Study of Efficacy and the Ability to Reduce Benzodiazepine Use.Pharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Advancements in Valproate Therapy for Seizures, Migraines, and Bipolar Disorders.Medical principles and practice : international journal of the Kuwait University, Health Science Centre · 2025Review
- Anxiolytic and sedative effects of sodium valproate with different experimental paradigms in male and female rats.Neuropsychopharmacology reports · 2024Article
- Treatment of Aggressive Behavior and Agitation in an 11-Year-Old Boy with Co-Occurring Autism and ADHD: A Case Report and Literature Review on the Use of Intravenous Valproate in Emergency Psychiatry.Journal of clinical medicine · 2024Review
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
8 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
rationaleThe use of intravenous valproate is not approved for clinical practice in psychiatry. Literature data pointed out for a potential usefulness of this route of administration for valproate, but there is no actual consensus.
objectivesThe aim of the present systematic review is to assess the effectiveness of intravenous valproate in agitation as well as general safety.
methodsA systematic review of studies evaluating the use of intravenous valproate in agitation was conducted. Additionally, safety was evaluated in all randomized trials involving the use of intravenous valproate in all medical conditions (epilepsy, migraine and psychiatric conditions).
resultsFor the systematic review on effectiveness in agitation, the search yielded 965 articles overall. After removing duplicates, 9411 articles were screened by title and abstract, and 39 of these were evaluated at a full-text level. Six studies were considered eligible for qualitative synthesis: one RCT and case report (n = 3), followed by cohort studies (n = 2). For the systematic review on safety, twenty-two RCTs were considered eligible for quantitative synthesis.
conclusionIntravenous valproate seems efficacious in reducing agitation in psychiatric patients; it generally appears safe compared to other neuroleptics or antiepileptics. However, the evidence is still not strong as it relies mainly on open-label studies or case series.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
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.