Posted by scott-d-o on February 14, 2004, at 22:30:30
In reply to Re: Buspar mechanism of action, posted by chess on February 13, 2004, at 10:10:17
> The interesting point is that it takes Buspar around 4 weeks for its therapeutic action to take effect.
> So what it initially does (full agonist at 5-HT1a autoreceptors and a partial agonist at postsynaptic 5-HT1a receptors) is not what I'm asking about specifically, but rather what effect it has caused after 4 weeks is the question, which is why I remarked and asked for confirmation about Buspar reducing anxiety because over time (around 4 weeks) it eventually desensitizes the 5ht1a autoreceptor which then causes more serotonin to be released which then over time down-regulates the postsynaptic 5ht2a receptor and thus reduces anxiety.
> I understand why some people say "just take it", but if buspar's effect is due primarily to it's enhancement of serotonin release after 4 weeks then it seems to me that the SSRIs are doing the same thing, so why not just take an SSRI?Why not just take a SSRI? Good question... First of all, buspirone was invented way before SSRI's existed, so there wasn't always that option. Buspirone, like SSRI's, is useless for anxiety in my opinion, unless the anxiety is being caused by a depressive disorder, thus I think it should have been marketed as an antidepressant. I guess perhaps they thought that they might be able to steal some market share from the benzodiazepine class of meds by marketing it as a "non-addictive anti-anxiety med."
Nowadays, buspirone is most commonly used in conjunction with a SSRI. It increases dopamine and norepinephrine thru DA2 antagonism and alpha-2 adrenergic antagonism and thus reduces common SSRI-induced side effects such as bruxism, and sexual dysfunction. Most find a SSRI and buspirone to be a good combination. Personally, I could not even tolerate a SSRI without buspirone or another dopaminergic medication.
If you do not want to take multiple medications and just want an pure anti-anxiety effect, look at the benzodiazepines such as clonazepam. They are non-addictive but can cause dependency like the SSRI's. Hope this helps.
scott
poster:scott-d-o
thread:312027
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20040210/msgs/313433.html