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General topics about antidepressants
Antidepressant medications: Dose equivalents
Which antidepressants are FDA-approved for use in pediatric patients?
Antidepressants are like antibiotics
Can we increase the levels of all THREE neurotransmitters in major depression?
How and when to titrate up antidepressants
Do any antidepressants come in liquid forms?
Antidepressants: What are the alternatives to the oral route?
Sometimes, a medication may be given rectally
Different and confusing ways in which antidepressants are classified
Pharmacological effects of antidepressants explain the alternative names for their classification
S-adenosylmethionine (SAMe) for depressive disorders: An overview
Which antidepressants are better than the SSRIs?
How to titrate antidepressants: which medications, which patients, how much, how long
Antidepressants: how much and for how long?
Combining antidepressants: Are two better than one?
SSRI/ SNRI plus mirtazapine: What three clinical trials found
Factors to consider in switching from one antidepressant to another
Switching antidepressants: Lessons from a difficult case
Can patients have alcohol while on an antidepressant?
Omega-3 fatty acids for depressive disorders?
Complementary and alternative medicines (CAM) for depressive disorders
Do antidepressants work and which ones work better? (Interview with Michael Thase, MD)
Adjunctive estrogen for perimenopausal depression?
Antidepressants in the Medically Ill
Antidepressants to use and to avoid in persons with comorbid medical illness
Antidepressants to use and to avoid in patients with cardiac disease
Antidepressants to use and to avoid in patients with renal (kidney) disease
Antidepressants to use and to avoid in patients with liver disease
Antidepressants and risk of stroke
Is mirtazapine safe to use after a renal transplant?
N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonists
Esketamine nasal spray (Spravato®)
Esketamine nasal spray (brand name Spravato): Basic information
What does “treatment-resistant depression” in the indication for esketamine (Spravato®) mean?
How well does esketamine nasal spray (Spravato®) work for treatment-resistant depression?
Common and other side effects of esketamine nasal spray (Spravato®)
Dissociation and perceptual disturbances with esketamine nasal spray (Spravato®)
Esketamine nasal spray (Spravato®): Clinical trials in “treatment-resistant depression”
Stimulants in a patient receiving ketamine/ esketamine?
What about concomitant medications during ketamine or esketamine treatment?
Ketamine (off-label)
Ketamine for major depression: An overview
How can response to intravenous ketamine be maintained?
Common myths about IV ketamine for depressive disorders
Stimulants in a patient receiving ketamine/ esketamine?
What to do about concomitant medications during ketamine or esketamine treatment
Oral ketamine (off-label)
Should we consider ORAL ketamine for clinical depression/ suicidality?
Dextromethorphan and bupropion (Auvelity™)
Dextromethorphan and bupropion (Auvelity™): Basic Information
Why is dextromethorphan combined with a CYP 2D6 inhibitor?
Dextromethorphan-bupropion (Auvelity™): Efficacy
Understanding antidepressant clinical trial results: Dextromethorphan-bupropion (Auvelity™)
Potential side effects of dextromethorphan and bupropion (Auvelity™)
Does dextromethorphan-bupropion (Auvelity™) have abuse potential?
A primer on dextromethorphan abuse or dependence
Can generic dextromethorphan and bupropion be used instead of the brand name combination?
Dextromethorphan: pharmacodynamics (receptor effects)
Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs)
Citalopram
Escitalopram
Fluoxetine
Fluvoxamine
Is fluvoxamine more effective for OCD than other SSRIs?
What to do about excessive sweating in this patient with OCD
Fluvoxamine (Luvox®): Basic Information
Paroxetine
Sertraline
Miscellaneous
Who is at higher risk of bleeding with antidepressants?
Antidepressants and bleeding: When and what to ask?
Should we give high-dose SSRI for panic disorder?
Serotonin syndrome with a combination of buspirone and a serotonergic antidepressant?
Do stimulant medications work for major depressive disorder?
Serotonin Norepinephrine Reuptake Inhibitors (SNRIs)
General
Are there clinically-important differences between the various SNRIs?
SNRIs differ in the extent of norepinephrine reuptake inhibition
Desvenlafaxine
Reasons to prefer desvenlafaxine (Pristiq®) over venlafaxine (Effexor XR®)
How exactly should desvenlafaxine be stopped?
Duloxetine
Antidepressant discontinuation (withdrawal): Duloxetine
How can duloxetine can be tapered very slowly?
Pros and cons of venlafaxine versus duloxetine
Duloxetine (Cymbalta®): Basic Information
Levomilnacipran
Levomilnacipran (Fetzima®): Basic Information
Levomilnacipran (Fetzima®): Efficacy
Levomilnacipran (Fetzima®): Pharmacological Effects
Levomilnacipran (Fetzima®): Pharmacokinetics
Levomilnacipran (Fetzima®): Drug Interactions
Levomilnacipran (Fetzima®): Adverse Effects
Levomilnacipran (Fetzima®): An organized list of references
Venlafaxine
When a patient has difficulty getting off venlafaxine
Reasons to prefer desvenlafaxine (Pristiq®) over venlafaxine (Effexor XR®)
Pros and cons of venlafaxine versus duloxetine
Which causes more weight gain—venlafaxine or duloxetine?
Venlafaxine (Effexor XR®): Basic Information
Venlafaxine (Effexor XR®) versus SSRIs
Other second-generation antidepressants
Bupropion
Bupropion (Wellbutrin SR® or Wellbutrin XL®): Basic Information
Bupropion Preparations (Wellbutrin XL® and others)
Bupropion (Wellbutrin XL®) versus SSRIs
Why isn’t bupropion the most frequently prescribed antidepressant?
Can we increase levels of all THREE neurotransmitters in major depression?
Is generic bupropion as effective as brand-name Wellbutrin®?
What factors can increase the risk of seizures with bupropion?
Bupropion and seizures: the facts and the myths
Is a history of seizures in early childhood a contraindication to using bupropion?
Bupropion in persons with renal impairment
Would you ever use bupropion to treat panic disorder?
Seizure risk if atomoxetine and bupropion are used together?
Does bupropion treat antidepressant-induced sexual dysfunction?
Are varenicline (Chantix) and bupropion safe for smoking cessation in persons with mental disorders?
Can patients on bupropion drink alcohol? Part one
Bupropion for cocaine use disorder?
How and why is bupropion sometimes used to “get high”?
Mirtazapine
Mirtazapine (Remeron®): Basic Information
Is mirtazapine LESS sedating at higher doses?
Can mirtazapine be started at 30 mg per day?
Is mirtazapine safe to use after a renal transplant?
Is mirtazapine (Remeron) better than SSRIs for the treatment of major depressive disorder?
Combining antidepressants: Are two better than one?
Three RCTs of SSRI/ SNRI plus mirtazapine from the start
Is it true that mirtazapine (Remeron®) can cause agranulocytosis?
Mirtazapine may cause akathisia at higher doses
Can mirtazapine increase the risk of QT prolongation?
Trazodone
Vilazodone
Vortioxetine
Vortioxetine (Trintellix®): Basic Information
Vortioxetine (Trintellix®): Efficacy
Does vortioxetine work for Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)?
Vortioxetine versus other antidepressants
Vortioxetine (Trintellix®): Pharmacological effects
What side effects can occur with vortioxetine (Trintellix®)?
Potential side effects handout for vortioxetine (Trintellix®)
PsychopharMYTH: “Vortioxetine does not cause sexual dysfunction”
Vortioxetine (Trintellix®): Drug Interactions
Brand name change for Brintellix® (vortioxetine)
Vortioxetine (Trintellix®): An organized list of references
Tricyclic/tetracyclic antidepressants
Tricyclic/tetracyclic antidepressants—General articles
Tricyclic/Tetracyclic Antidepressants (TCAs): An overview
How to choose a tricyclic antidepressant
Which TCA do I usually recommend first?
Which tricyclic antidepressants (TCAs) are the most effective ones for major depressive disorder (MDD)?
Many patients are on low-dose TCAs. Can other antidepressants be added?
TCAs other than clomipramine for OCD?
Tricyclic/tetracyclic antidepressants—Tertiary amines
How is imipramine palmoate (Tofranil-PM) different from imipramine hydrochloride (Tofranil)?
Clomipramine versus SSRIs for OCD
When and how to check the clomipramine level
How to interpret clomipramine and desmethylclomipramine levels
Doxepin and cytochrome P450 drug interactions
Are doxepin’s anticholinergic effects dose-dependent?
Doxepin (Sinequan®): Basic Information
Tricyclic/tetracyclic antidepressants—Secondary amines
How to order and interpret the serum nortriptyline level
Nortriptyline (Pamelor®): Basic Information
Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors (MAOIs)
Classic MAO inhibitors
Classic MAO inhibitors—General
Types of MAO and of MAO inhibitors
Are MAO inhibitors (MAOIs) efficacious and safe for bipolar depression?
Combining an MAO inhibitor and another antidepressant
Can antidepressants be used with MAO-B inhibitors?
How to manage major depressive disorder with atypical features
Phenelzine
Phenelzine (Nardil®): Basic Information
How to choose between phenelzine (Nardil®) and tranylcypromine (Parnate®)
Selegiline
Tranylcypromine
Tranylcypromine (Parnate®): Basic Information
How to choose between phenelzine (Nardil®) and tranylcypromine (Parnate®)
Isocarboxazid
MAO inhibitors—Diet
MAO inhibitor diet
MAO Inhibitor diet (patient handout)
Can I have cheese or pizza?
How about some Chinese food?
MAO inhibitors and goat cheese
MAO inhibitors—Side effects
How to choose between phenelzine (Nardil®) and tranylcypromine (Parnate®)
MAO inhibitor-induced insomnia
MAO inhibitors and edema
MAO inhibitors can affect vitamin B6 (pyridoxine)
Rash, irritation, or itching with transdermal patches
MAO inhibitors—Drug interactions
MAO inhibitors and other medications
MAO Inhibitors and other medications (patient handout) (link to the handouts page)
Be very careful when switching from one MAO inhibitor to another
MAO inhibitors (MAOIs) and contraindicated medications: How long do we have to wait?
How to switch from oral or transdermal selegiline (Emsam®) to another MAO inhibitor
Should we prescribe emergency medication for hypertensive urgency with MAO inhibitors?
Pramipexole
Pramipexole for major depressive disorder or bipolar depression
Tips on using pramipexole for mood disorders
Pramipexole: Basic information
Potential adverse effects of pramipexole
Can a dopamine agonist (pramipexole, ropinirole) and a stimulant be combined?
Dopamine agonist withdrawal syndrome (DAWS)
Antidepressants—Side effects
Three SSRIs that may cause QT prolongation
Antidepressant-induced tardive dyskinesia
Which antidepressants in patients with a history of, or at higher risk for, bleeding
Antidepressants can injure the liver, some more than others
How common is new-onset hyponatremia during antidepressant treatment?
Tinnitus associated with antidepressant medications
Is a mood stabilizer essential after antidepressant-induced mania/hypomania?
Also see: MAO Inhibitors—Side effects
Antidepressants—Drug interactions
Some antidepressants may have clinically important interactions with tramadol (Ultram(R))
Direct-acting oral anticoagulants (DOACs) and antidepressants
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