Posted by Elizabeth on December 11, 2001, at 15:18:03
In reply to Adding Desipramine to Effexor, posted by angel1 on December 11, 2001, at 6:17:43
> Anyone know if I can take effexor and desipramine together?
Yes, you can. When the only ADs around were the MAOIs, TCAs, and SSRIs, adding a TCA (often desipramine, because of its relative selectivity for NE reuptake and its superior tolerability and safety profiles compared to most TCAs) to a SSRI was a common augmentation strategy.
There will be an increased risk for seizures and cardiac arrhythmias with the combination than with either drug alone. Both drugs are less likely than most TCAs to cause these problems, and the combination should be okay as long as you don't have any preexisting condition or predisposition, but it might be a good idea to have some tests done to make sure (for example: ECG, EEG, brain MRI), maybe once at baseline (on just the Effexor) and then again after adding the desipramine. There may be some tests that you would want to have routinely for safety reasons. I don't know how necessary this is, it depends on a lot of things (any preexisting risk factors, how much of a chance there really is for problems with these two meds, how big a deal your doctor thinks it is, etc.).
You also might want to have your serum desipramine level monitored (at least, until you get to a dose that works for you) if you're going to try this. Although Effexor is less likely to cause elevated TCA levels than, say, Prozac, it still may have some effect (TCA metabolism isn't a one-step process).
Good luck with it. I really encourage you to talk to your doctor before trying something like this, because although it's probably safe, you may need to double-check. TCAs -- even desipramine, which is one of the safest ones -- aren't drugs to play around with.
-elizabeth
poster:Elizabeth
thread:86541
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20011202/msgs/86580.html