Antidepressants

Class at a glance

• Broad class for depressive disorders

Clinical role

• SSRIs/SNRIs are common first-line drugs

Other clinical roles

• Benefits extend to anxiety, pain + other uses
• Discontinuation and DDI profiles vary widely

Safety / monitoring

• TCAs/MAOIs work but have more toxicity
• Other agents differ by sleep/weight/sexual effects

Pearls

• Early gains by 2 weeks; full benefit takes 4–8 weeks
• Many don't respond to the first drug
• Any can trigger mania; screen for bipolar history first

Self-check

• Which antidepressant classes work but generally have more toxicity?
  TCAs and MAOIs.
• Which antidepressant classes are common first-line choices?
  SSRIs and SNRIs.

Drugs in this class (42)

All drug classes · Open Antidepressants in the interactive console ↗