Therapeutic Levels for Tegretol in Bipolar Treatment

Tegretol (generic name Carbamazepine) is a medication that has, in the past few years, become popular in treating bipolar disorder. Understanding its therapeutic levels will help you understand how the medication helps treat the symptoms of bipolar disorder.

Origins of Tegretol

• Like many other psychotropic medications, Tegretol was originally developed as an anti-epileptic medication. Its ability to treat the symptoms of bipolar disorder is essentially a side effect of its original intentions.

How it Works

• Tegretol has several effects on bipolar symptoms. It works specifically to reduce the intensity of the manic cycles of the disorder. Tegretol also helps reduce the frequency of cycles, so a person taking it will be able to maintain a "normal" mood level for longer periods of time.

Forms of Tegretol

• Tegretol is most commonly distributed as a tablet. Three tablets you can obtain are 100 mg chewable tablets, 200 mg tablets, and Tegretrol XR, which is an extended release tablet. Available in 100, 200, or 400 mg doses, the extended release tablets are especially popular in treating bipolar disorder.

Dosage of Tegretol

• The most common ratio of Tegretol is 10 mg per 66 lbs of body weight. It is typical for the total dosage to be spread throughout the day, (e.g., 50 mg in the morning and 50 mg at bedtime). The medication must be distributed throughout the body for several days before reaching a therapeutic level, and not all of it is absorbed.

Creating a Therapeutic Level

• Since Tegretol is distributed through the bloodstream, blood work will be done to determine whether a therapeutic level has been reached. Typically, the therapeutic level is 4-12 ml in your blood. A dosage may need to be increased or decreased if there is too much or too little Tegretol in the bloodstream.