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Article: Don't take Prozac lightly.
- Article from:
- Medical Update
- Article date:
- February 1, 1994
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1994 Benjamin Franklin Literary & Medical Society, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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The discovery and marketing of Prozac in the late '80s by Eli Lilly and Company marked the beginning of a new era in the treatment of depression. Known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), this radically new class of drugs offers distinct advantages over the older tricyclics, heterocyclics, and monoamine oxidase inhibitors. Whereas the older drugs required weeks of experimentation to arrive at a correct dosage, the SSRIs are usually prescribed at one pill a day. The SSRIs, including Prozac, Pemelor, Paxil, Zoloft, and the latest entry to the field, Luvox, show fewer side effects--weight gain, drowsiness, irregular heartbeat-- than the older drugs. The side ...