Abstract
We would like to reply to the letter recently published in your journal by Drs Gupta and Brown concerning the recent British Psychological Society Report, Understanding Bipolar Disorder - Why Some People Experience Extreme Mood Swings and What Can Help (1). As authors of this report we were pleased that it has generated debate. In the main, responses from psychiatric and other clinical colleagues have been overwhelmingly positive. MDF-The Bipolar Organisation referred to the report as 'groundbreaking' in their periodical Pendulum (2) and Stephen Fry's tweet on the report led to 2000 downloads in one day. We would like to thank Drs Gupta and Brown for their interest in this report, and for giving their opinion. However they make some criticisms which we feel are are based on misunderstandings, and we would like to correct these.
Highlights
The report on the adverse effects of mephedrone in patients presenting to an acute service in Scotland echoed many of our own findings in attendees of a service aimed at the early detection of psychotic illness based in inner-city London.[1]
We found that 8% of patients (n = 5) seeking help for concerns about their mental health were using mephedrone
As mephedrone has been classified as an illicit substance, it is possible that similar chemical compounds will become more widely used as cognitive enhancers in the student population
Summary
The report on the adverse effects of mephedrone in patients presenting to an acute service in Scotland echoed many of our own findings in attendees of a service aimed at the early detection of psychotic illness based in inner-city London.[1]. Both acute secondary and primary care mental health services should be aware of the adverse effects of this group of stimulants.
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