Given the sensitivity of individuals with mood disorders to circadian disruption, transmeridian travel would likely be a high-risk endeavour leading to onset or relapses in mood. A systematic review was undertaken to identify the evidence of the impact of transmeridian travel on people with mood disorders.
Databases search included the following: CINAHL, MEDLINE, PsycINFO and manual searching using the keywords jetlag, transmeridian travel, circadian rhythm disruption, mood disorder, bipolar, major depression, seasonal affective disorder, depression, mania and hypomania.
Only three studies were identified that related to transmeridian travel and jetlag in people with mood disorders. There is some suggestion that transmeridian travel does appear to precipitate mood episodes with an increased rate of episodes of depression with westward compared with an increased rate of manic/hypomanic episodes with eastward travel. Individuals with a previous history of mood disorder appear to be more vulnerable if adherence to medication is compromised.
Given the limited evidence that transmeridian travel precipitates mood episodes, this poses difficulties in identifying suitable ways to mitigate the effects of transmeridian travel in mood disorders. However, in the absence of mood-specific guidelines, some guidance can be given based on our current understanding of the relevance of circadian disruption to both jetlag and mood disorders. Further research is required to identify more focused strategies to mitigate the impact of transmeridian travel for individuals with mood disorders.
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 2. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 09 July 2026.
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#22,145,922
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Outputs from Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry
#2,049
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#172,238
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Outputs of similar age from Australian & New Zealand Journal of Psychiatry
#22
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Altmetric has tracked 34,152,035 research outputs across all sources so far. This one is in the 34th percentile – i.e., 34% of other outputs scored the same or lower than it.
So far Altmetric has tracked 2,951 research outputs from this source. They typically receive a lot more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 13.2. This one is in the 29th percentile – i.e., 29% of its peers scored the same or lower than it.
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We're also able to compare this research output to 31 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one is in the 29th percentile – i.e., 29% of its contemporaries scored the same or lower than it.
