Lexapro (escitalopram) is an antidepressant in a group of drugs called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). Lexapro affects chemicals in the brain that may become unbalanced and cause depression or anxiety.
Lexapro is used to treat anxiety in adults and major depressive disorder in adults and adolescents who are at least 12 years old.
Do not take Lexapro together with a monoamine oxidase inhibitor (MAOI) such as furazolidone (Furoxone), isocarboxazid (Marplan), phenelzine (Nardil), rasagiline (Azilect), selegiline (Eldepryl, Emsam, Zelapar), or tranylcypromine (Parnate). You must wait at least 14 days after stopping an MAOI before you can take Lexapro. After you stop taking Lexapro, you must wait at least 14 days before you start taking an MAOI.
You may have thoughts about suicide when you first start taking an antidepressant, especially if you are younger than 24 years old. Your doctor will need to check you at regular visits for at least the first 12 weeks of treatment.
Report any new or worsening symptoms to your doctor, such as: mood or behavior changes, anxiety, panic attacks, trouble sleeping, or if you feel impulsive, irritable, agitated, hostile, aggressive, restless, hyperactive (mentally or physically), more depressed, or have thoughts about suicide or hurting yourself. Tell your doctor right away if you become pregnant while taking this medication. Lexapro may cause heart defects or serious lung problems in a newborn if you take the medication during pregnancy. However, you may have a relapse of depression if you stop taking your antidepressant. Do not start or stop taking Lexapro during pregnancy without your doctor's advice.
The damned stuff saved my life, or at least my quality of life. I was depressed for 35 years and about three years ago I decided I didn't care anymore what people thought - I was going to try medication for depression. I started with WellButrin, and it helped a bit - the constant undercurrent of grief began to let up a little. I figured "in for a penny, in for a pound" and agreed to try Lexapro, and for the first time since I was a kid, I felt *normal*. I have energy, have a life.
Monday, November 5, 2012
Lexapro Approved for Adolescent Depression
The Forest Laboratories antidepressant Lexapro (escitalopram oxalate) has been approved to treat major depressive disorder (MDD) in people aged 12 to 17, the company said Friday in a news release.
Some 2 million teens in the United States have had a bout of MDD in the past year, the company said.
Approved for adults in 2002, Lexapro is among a class of antidepressants called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). It was evaluated in treating adolescent depression in two placebo-controlled studies, the news release said.
According to the Associated Press, the U.S. Justice Department last month filed a complaint against Forest, alleging that the drug maker had inappropriately promoted Lexapro for use by children. Forest has denied the complaint's allegations, the wire service said.
Lexapro and similar antidepressants include an FDA "black-box" label warning stating they show an increased risk compared to a non-medicinal placebo of "suicidal thinking and behavior (suicidality) in children, adolescents, and young adults in short-term studies of major depressive disorder (MDD) and other psychiatric disorders."
The warning advises that anyone considering the use of Lexapro or any other antidepressant in a child, adolescent, or young adult "must balance this risk with the clinical need."
Some 2 million teens in the United States have had a bout of MDD in the past year, the company said.
Approved for adults in 2002, Lexapro is among a class of antidepressants called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs). It was evaluated in treating adolescent depression in two placebo-controlled studies, the news release said.
According to the Associated Press, the U.S. Justice Department last month filed a complaint against Forest, alleging that the drug maker had inappropriately promoted Lexapro for use by children. Forest has denied the complaint's allegations, the wire service said.
Lexapro and similar antidepressants include an FDA "black-box" label warning stating they show an increased risk compared to a non-medicinal placebo of "suicidal thinking and behavior (suicidality) in children, adolescents, and young adults in short-term studies of major depressive disorder (MDD) and other psychiatric disorders."
The warning advises that anyone considering the use of Lexapro or any other antidepressant in a child, adolescent, or young adult "must balance this risk with the clinical need."
Zoloft, Lexapro the Best of Newer Antidepressants
Sertraline (Zoloft) and escitalopram (Lexapro) are the best of 12 new-generation antidepressants, while reboxetine is the least effective, a new analysis shows.
The Italian researchers reviewed 117 studies that included more than 25,000 patients with major depression to come to this conclusion.
The drugs tested in the trials were bupropion (Wellbutrin/Zyban), citalopram (Celexa), duloxetine (Cymbalta), escitalopram, fluoxetine (Prozac), fluvoxamine (Luvox), milnacipran (Savella), mirtazapine (Remeron), paroxetine (Paxil), reboxetine (Edronax/Vestra), sertraline, and venlafaxine (Effexor).
Based on their analysis, the review authors concluded sertraline and escitalopram were the best antidepressants overall in terms of efficacy and patient acceptability. Sertraline was found to be more effective than duloxetine by 30 percent, fluvoxamine (27 percent), fluoxetine (25 percent), paroxetine (25 percent), and reboxetine (85 percent). Escitalopram was more effective than duloxetine by 33 percent, fluoxetine (32 percent), fluvoxamine (35 percent), paroxetine (30 percent), and reboxetine (95 percent).
Mirtzapine and venlafaxine were as effective as sertraline and escitalopram. But the latter two drugs had the best patient acceptability, which meant significantly fewer patients stopped treatment.
The review was published online Jan. 29 and was expected to be published in an upcoming print issue of The Lancet.
"The most important clinical implication of the results is that escitalopram and sertraline might be the best choice when starting a treatment for moderate to severe major depression, because they have the best possible balance between efficacy and acceptability," Dr. Andrea Cipriani, of the University of Verona in Italy, and colleagues said in a news release from the journal.
"Sertraline seems to be better than escitalopram because of its lower cost in most countries. However, in the absence of a full economic model, this recommendation cannot be made unequivocally, because several other costs are associated with the use of antidepressants," they added.
The Italian researchers reviewed 117 studies that included more than 25,000 patients with major depression to come to this conclusion.
The drugs tested in the trials were bupropion (Wellbutrin/Zyban), citalopram (Celexa), duloxetine (Cymbalta), escitalopram, fluoxetine (Prozac), fluvoxamine (Luvox), milnacipran (Savella), mirtazapine (Remeron), paroxetine (Paxil), reboxetine (Edronax/Vestra), sertraline, and venlafaxine (Effexor).
Based on their analysis, the review authors concluded sertraline and escitalopram were the best antidepressants overall in terms of efficacy and patient acceptability. Sertraline was found to be more effective than duloxetine by 30 percent, fluvoxamine (27 percent), fluoxetine (25 percent), paroxetine (25 percent), and reboxetine (85 percent). Escitalopram was more effective than duloxetine by 33 percent, fluoxetine (32 percent), fluvoxamine (35 percent), paroxetine (30 percent), and reboxetine (95 percent).
Mirtzapine and venlafaxine were as effective as sertraline and escitalopram. But the latter two drugs had the best patient acceptability, which meant significantly fewer patients stopped treatment.
The review was published online Jan. 29 and was expected to be published in an upcoming print issue of The Lancet.
"The most important clinical implication of the results is that escitalopram and sertraline might be the best choice when starting a treatment for moderate to severe major depression, because they have the best possible balance between efficacy and acceptability," Dr. Andrea Cipriani, of the University of Verona in Italy, and colleagues said in a news release from the journal.
"Sertraline seems to be better than escitalopram because of its lower cost in most countries. However, in the absence of a full economic model, this recommendation cannot be made unequivocally, because several other costs are associated with the use of antidepressants," they added.
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