What are some common side effects of antidepressants? How can it be prevented and mitigated?

Mondo Health Updated on 2024-02-01

This article is from "Nankai Sun Pharmacist", which is used for medical science popularization for reference. Depression is a common clinical mental and psychological disease, common loss of appetite, insomnia, excessive sleep, temper tantrums, loss of interest, panic, general fatigue, anxiety, suicidal thoughts or suicidal behavior, systemic pain and other clinical manifestations, seriously affecting normal work and study, depression ** unknown, currently believed to be related to excessive work and study pressure, obesity, changes in human hormone levels, reduced tolerance to external stimuli and other factors.

Drugs are an integral part of depression, antidepressants generally take 1 2 weeks to take effect, in order to achieve better results, at least half a year in a row, some patients with severe or ** conditions need to take longer, in the use of antidepressants may appear *** related to the dosage and course of medication, especially in the early stage of taking the drug, many patients are prone to intolerance, should consult a doctor in time, if necessary, adjust the drug or dosage, with the extension of the medication timeToday, Pharmacist Sun will summarize and summarize the common antidepressants, and introduce the methods of prevention and mitigation for everyone

Sexual dysfunction: Although sexual dysfunction itself is a common manifestation of depression, many patients will have sexual dysfunction when taking antidepressants, manifested as decreased libido, delay, erectile dysfunction, anhedonia, etc., almost all antidepressants may cause sexual dysfunction, among which sertraline, paroxetine, fluoxetine, fluvoxamine and ciprophthalin and other drugs are particularly obvious, patients with higher requirements for sexual life can choose bupropion, mirtazapine, Drugs such as nefazodone that have less effect on sexual function.

Sedative effect: ciprophthalam, escipropro phthalein, venlafaxine, mirtazapine, amitriptyline, sertraline, paroxetine and other drugs have a strong sedative effect, it is easier to get sleepy after eating, it is recommended that depressed patients with insomnia take it before bedtime, which can help improve sleep, fluoxetine has a weak drowsiness effect, and can be taken during the day.

Weight changes: Some antidepressants can promote appetite and change glucose metabolism, which can lead to weight gain, and even obesity.

Blood pressure changes: venlafaxine has a great impact on blood pressure, low doses can cause blood pressure to continue to rise, hypertension patients should use this drug with caution, closely monitor blood pressure during the medication, if there is a persistent increase in blood pressure, the drug should be changed. Drugs such as imipramine, clomipramine, amitriptyline, and trazodone are easy to cause orthostatic hypotension, such as dizziness and even falls when squatting and standing up suddenly, so blood pressure should also be monitored when taking these drugs, and the movements should be slower when getting up or moving.

Suicide risk: fluoxetine, sertraline, paroxetine and other drugs have a slow onset of effect, generally taking 2 to 4 weeks, which may affect the patient's medication compliance and increase the risk of suicide, especially in the early stage of medication, family members should pay close attention to the patient, once there is suicidal tendencies or suicidal behavior, the attending doctor should be informed in time, and the ** plan should be adjusted in time.

Discontinuation syndrome: Patients who have been taking sertraline, paroxetine, venlafaxine and other drugs for a long time may have dizziness, insomnia, anxiety, sensory disorders, headache and other discontinuation syndromes when stopping the drug.

Other: A small number of patients may experience neutropenia after taking mirtazapine, which is prone to cause some infectious diseases, and it is recommended to monitor the blood routine if necessary.

Finally, the harmful effects other than the ** effect cannot be avoided in the process of medication, antidepressants are prone to occur in the early stage of medication *** If the patient cannot tolerate it, the patient should consult a physician or pharmacist in time, adjust the dosage of the drug or switch to other drugs if necessary, and most of them can gradually relieve or subside with the prolongation of medication.

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