Antidepressant Unwanted Effects Like Weight, Blood Pressure Changes Vary Depending on Medication

• A large new research discovered that the adverse reactions of antidepressants vary significantly by drug.
• Certain medications caused weight loss, while other medications led to added mass.
• Pulse rate and arterial pressure additionally diverged markedly across treatments.
• Individuals encountering continuing, severe, or worrisome adverse reactions must discuss with a healthcare professional.

Latest research has found that depression drug side effects may be more diverse than earlier believed.

This extensive study, released on October 21, assessed the effect of antidepressant medications on more than 58,000 individuals within the beginning two months of commencing treatment.

The researchers analyzed 151 research projects of 30 pharmaceuticals commonly prescribed to treat depression. Although not every patient develops side effects, certain of the most prevalent recorded in the research were variations in body weight, BP, and metabolic parameters.

There were striking variations between antidepressant medications. As an illustration, an 60-day treatment period of agomelatine was associated with an mean reduction in body weight of approximately 2.4 kilos (roughly 5.3 lbs), whereas maprotiline individuals increased nearly 2 kg in the equivalent duration.

Additionally, marked variations in cardiac function: fluvoxamine tended to reduce cardiac rhythm, in contrast nortriptyline raised it, producing a difference of approximately 21 BPM among the two drugs. Blood pressure differed too, with an 11 millimeters of mercury difference observed across nortriptyline and doxepin.

Healthcare specialists observed that the investigation's conclusions are not considered novel or unexpected to mental health professionals.

"We've long known that various antidepressant medications range in their effects on weight, arterial pressure, and additional metabolic parameters," one specialist explained.

"However, what is notable about this investigation is the rigorous, comparison-based assessment of these disparities across a broad array of bodily measurements employing data from in excess of 58,000 participants," the professional noted.

This research offers strong support of the degree of side effects, certain of which are more frequent than other effects. Common antidepressant unwanted effects may comprise:

• gastrointestinal symptoms (nausea, diarrhea, constipation)
• intimacy issues (reduced sex drive, anorgasmia)
• body weight fluctuations (gain or loss, depending on the agent)
• sleep problems (sleeplessness or sleepiness)
• oral dehydration, sweating, head pain

At the same time, rarer but therapeutically relevant side effects may comprise:

• rises in blood pressure or heart rate (especially with serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors and some tricyclic antidepressants)
• low sodium (especially in senior patients, with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and SNRIs)
• liver enzyme elevations
• QTc extension (risk of arrhythmia, especially with one medication and certain tricyclics)
• emotional blunting or indifference

"A key factor to consider in this context is that there are multiple distinct classes of antidepressants, which lead to the varying unwanted drug side effects," a different professional explained.

"Additionally, antidepressant drugs can impact every individual variably, and negative side effects can range according to the particular pharmaceutical, amount, and patient factors such as metabolic rate or comorbidities."

Although certain adverse reactions, like changes in sleep, appetite, or stamina, are fairly typical and often enhance with time, different reactions may be less frequent or more persistent.

Antidepressant medication unwanted effects may differ in intensity, which could require a change in your medication.

"An adjustment in antidepressant may be warranted if the person experiences persistent or unbearable adverse reactions that fail to enhance with passing days or supportive measures," one expert said.

"Additionally, if there is an appearance of recent health problems that may be exacerbated by the present treatment, for instance hypertension, irregular heartbeat, or significant increased body weight."

Patients may furthermore think about consulting with your physician about any deficiency of meaningful progress in low mood or anxiety indicators subsequent to an sufficient evaluation duration. An appropriate evaluation duration is usually 4–8 weeks' time at a treatment amount.

Patient choice is additionally important. Some patients may prefer to evade particular adverse reactions, such as sexual problems or {weight gain|increased body weight|mass addition