Combinations - tetracylic and an ssri dangerous?

[thatsall]

i am very broke and connot afford a doctors appointment for another month. I am currently on 30mg of remeron which is tetracylic but as of yesterday leaned down to 15mg. It is not helping me all that much and i have a left over perscription of lexapro which i just too a 10mg pill. I am curious if there are any contrictions or can i take 15mg of remeron and 10mg of lexapro, or should i not mix the two. Helkp much appreciated.

[FrankenChrist]

Use caution and preferably do it under supervision. Google: mixing tricyclic ssri.
The tricyclic could really strenghten the antidepressant effect of and ssri.

funny. erowid doesn't show any relevant links at first sight.


Edit: whoops

[Forthesevenlakes]

I dont have any info on hand, but my gut instinct says its a bad idea, since both of them have a wide range of negative side effects, both affect the serotonin system in slightly different ways, and I've never heard of them being prescribed concomitantly. I'm just wondering if you'd run the risk of serotonin syndrome with both, ESPECIALLY if they were theoretically mixed with any psychedelic that binds serotonin receptors (which are many of the popular ones). Can anyone back me up on this?

[thatsall]

franken christ it is a Tetracylic not a tricylic. I dont know if this makes it any sfer but i do know that they are in seperate classes

[sands of time]

Tetracylic's are different from others because they have a 4 ring molecular structure. I have no idea why tetra is used for the name though.

Anways, I think the proposed idea could prove dangerous, and should be discussed with a doctor first. Though Remeron and Lexapro are chemically different, they both stop the reuptake of serotonin and norepinephrine (not so much with Lexapro). I would think that this combo would lead to increased side effects such nervousness, anxiety, nausea, insomnia... Not fun at all.

[riotpack]

I take 50mgs sertraline a day and when I have sleeping problems I take 7mg mirtazapine and have not noticed any issues, these are both tiny doses - you may have issues from the mirtazapine withdrawl as it affects more than just seratonin.

[mbu37]

If you search using the phrase "Drug Interaction Checker" you can input the two drugs in question and see if anything comes back. It may be of some help. Swim will also check the PDR and see if it mentions anything.

Hope this helps.

[~lostgurl~]

Just did a quick check on interactions with the tool in this thread: http://www.drugs-forum.com/forum/sho...449#post222449
and came up with nothing. Much caution is always given if one of the antidepressants is an MAOI but other than that there does not seem to be any documented evidence that mixing other antidepressants will have negative effects. Better to be safe than sorry though and best to keep all antidepressant use under the watchful eye of a Doctor

[~lostgurl~]

SWIM just used another interaction checker and came up with this:

mirtazapine and escitalopram (major Drug-Drug)
Description:
MONITOR CLOSELY: Concomitant use of agents with serotonergic activity such as serotonin reuptake inhibitors, monoamine oxidase inhibitors, tricyclic antidepressants, 5-HT1 receptor agonists, ergot alkaloids, lithium, St. John's wort, phenylpiperidine opioids, dextromethorphan, and 5-hydroxytryptophan may potentiate the risk of serotonin syndrome, which is a rare but serious and potentially fatal condition thought to result from hyperstimulation of brainstem 5-HT1A receptors. MANAGEMENT:
In general, the concomitant use of multiple serotonergic agents should be avoided if possible, or otherwise approached with caution if potential benefit is deemed to outweigh the risk. Close monitoring is recommended for signs and symptoms of excessive serotonergic activity such as CNS irritability, altered consciousness, confusion, myoclonus, ataxia, abdominal cramping, hyperpyrexia, shivering, pupillary dilation, diaphoresis, hypertension, and tachycardia. Particular caution is advised when increasing the dosages of these agents. The potential risk of serotonin syndrome should be considered even when administering one serotonergic agent following discontinuation of another, as some agents may demonstrate a prolonged elimination half-life. For example, a 5-week washout period is recommended following use of fluoxetine before administering another serotonergic agent.

(the link to go with this info contains ads but if you do a google search as suggested above you should be able to find this info. It is a bit OTT though as swim has been prescribed a number of these meds at the same time with her Dr informing her there was no risk whatsoever.)

Reputation Comments on this post:

nice info