antidepressant
Sign in to saveAntidepressants, also known in the past as psychic energizers, are a class of medications used to treat major depressive disorder, anxiety disorders, chronic pain, and addiction.
AI overview
Antidepressants are medications designed to treat major depressive disorder, anxiety disorders, chronic pain, and addiction. They matter because they provide a medical option for managing conditions that significantly affect people's quality of life and well-being.
AI-generated from the Wikipedia summary — may contain errors.
Key facts
- Drug class.Image
- Venlafaxine structure.svg
- Drug class.ImageClass
- skin-invert-image
- Drug class.Width
- 175px
- Drug class.Caption
- Venlafaxine (brand name Effexor), an antidepressant acting as a serotonin–norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI).
- Drug class.Synonyms
- Psychic energizer; Mood elevator; Thymoleptic; Depression pill
- Drug class.Use
- Depressive disorders, anxiety disorders, chronic pain, and addiction
- Drug class.ATC_prefix
- N06A
- Drug class.Mechanism_of_action
- Varies
- Drug class.Chemical_class
- Varies
- Drug class.MedlinePlus
- antidepressants
- Drug class.Consumer_Reports
- antidepressants
- Drug class.medicinenet
Article
60 sectionsContents
- Medical uses
- Major depressive disorder
- Anxiety disorders
- Generalized anxiety disorder
- Social anxiety disorder
- Obsessive–compulsive disorder
- Post–traumatic stress disorder
- Panic disorder
- Eating disorders
- Pain
- Fibromyalgia
- Neuropathic pain
- Other uses
- Limitations and strategies
- Switching antidepressants
- Augmentation and combination
- Long-term use and stopping
- Adverse effects
- Pregnancy
- Antidepressant-induced mania
- Suicide
- Sexual dysfunction
- Emotional blunting
- Changes in weight
- Bone loss
- Risk of death
- Discontinuation syndrome
- Pharmacology
- Monoamine hypothesis
- Other biological theories
- Placebo mechanisms
- Types
- Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors
- Serotonin–norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors
- Serotonin modulators and stimulators
- Serotonin antagonists and reuptake inhibitors
- Tricyclic antidepressants
- Tetracyclic antidepressants
- Monoamine oxidase inhibitors
- NMDA receptor antagonists
- Others
- Adjuncts
- Less common adjuncts
- History
- Isoniazid, iproniazid, and imipramine
- Second-generation antidepressants
- Rapid-acting antidepressants
- Research
- Publication bias and aged research
- Society and culture
- Prescription trends
- United Kingdom
- United States
- Adherence
- Social science perspective
- Environmental impacts
- See also
- References
- Further reading
- External links
Antidepressants, also known in the past as psychic energizers, are a class of medications used to treat major depressive disorder, anxiety disorders, chronic pain, and addiction.
Common side effects of antidepressants include dry mouth, weight gain, dizziness, headaches, akathisia, sexual dysfunction, and emotional blunting. There is an increased risk of suicidal thinking and behavior when taken by children, adolescents, and young adults. Discontinuation syndrome, which resembles recurrent depression in the case of the SSRI class, may occur after stopping the intake of any antidepressant, having effects which may be permanent and irreversible. Tapering off medications gradually is shown to reduce the risk of withdrawal complications.