MARIETTA, Ga.-- In a continued commitment to improving mental health treatment, Solvay Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is making LITHOBID(R) (Lithium Carbonate, USP) Slow-Release Tablets, 300 mg, available as an important option for the treatment of manic episodes of manic depressive illness. Lithium carbonate maintenance therapy has been a mainstay of treatment and has been shown to prevent or diminish the intensity of manic-depressive episodes in patients with a history of mania. Recently released guidelines on treatment of manic depression endorse the important role of lithium carbonate in the control of this disorder.

LITHOBID(R) Tablets, acquired from Ciba-Geigy, has been reintroduced following improvements in manufacturing processes. LITHOBID(R) Tablets offer advantages over immediate-release preparations by maintaining smoother lithium blood levels in patients and may provide twice-daily dosing as opposed to several times a day for immediate-release preparations.

"Solvay Pharmaceuticals is committed to providing effective treatments for mental health disorders," said David A. Dodd, President and CEO of Solvay Pharmaceuticals, Inc. "With more than 14 years of patient use and proven efficacy and safety, LITHOBID(R) Tablets are a needed treatment option for manic depression which affects millions of Americans."

The lifetime risk of manic depression is 1.2 percent, with an annual incidence of 9-15 new cases per 100,000 per year for men and 7-30 new cases per 100,000 per year for women. Studies have shown that an estimated 20 percent of all cases of major mood disorder result from manic depression.

Manic episodes are distinct periods in which one's mood changes from its normal state to an abnormally and persistently elevated, expansive, or irritable mood. The associated symptoms include inflated self-esteem, or grandiosity, feeling of elation, euphoria, decreased need for sleep, pressure of speech, flight of ideas, distractibility, aggressiveness and possible hostility.

It is estimated that between 1970 and 1980, the use of lithium as a treatment for manic-depression has saved $2.8 billion in medical costs and gained $1.28 billion in production, a conservative total of over $4 billion. Lithium has been used to treat manic depression for more than 20 years and is most likely to be effective in patients with pure manic symptomatology (elation and grandiosity). Response rates in these patients may be as high as 90 percent. A recent study also showed that within three weeks of vigorous lithium treatment, 49 percent of the patients had a moderate or better response.

LITHOBID(R) Tablets have a documented record of experience with 14 years of patient utilization and over a billion dispensed tablets. While LITHOBID(R) Tablets contain the same active ingredients as immediate-release lithium preparations, the patented LITHOBID(R) slow-release formulation helps to minimize variations in lithium concentrations as compared with immediate-release preparations.

Solvay Pharmaceuticals, Inc., of Marietta, Georgia, is a research-based pharmaceutical company active in the therapeutic areas of women's health, gastroenterology and mental health. Solvay Pharmaceuticals, Inc. is a member of the Solvay S.A. group of companies.

Solvay S.A., founded in 1863, is a worldwide chemical and pharmaceutical company with annual sales in excess of $8 billion. Headquartered in Brussels, Belgium, Solvay S.A. has a fast-growing sector of health care companies with annual sales totaling more than $1.4 billion and a commitment to researching and developing mental health disorder therapies.

The Lithium Information Center, a not-for-profit resource for patients and published information about lithium therapy, can be contacted by calling (608) 836-8070.

CONTACT: Solvay Pharmaceuticals, Inc. | Laurence J. Downey, MD, 770/578-5572 | or | Ketchum Public Relations | Farah Bulsara, 212/878-4686