Prozac "Reduces Risk Of Discontinuation Symptoms"

New data presented at the 6th World Congress of Biological Psychiatry inNice, France, have demonstrated that a brief interruption of treatment with Eli Lilly's selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor Prozac (fluoxetine) is not linked to a significant change in adverse events or the severity of depressive symptoms, compared to other SSRIs including Pfizer's Zoloft (sertraline) and SmithKline Beecham's Paxil (paroxetine).

Discontinuation symptoms may occur shortly after stopping or decreasing the dose of antidepressant, and include nausea, dizziness, headache, sleep disturbance and anxiety. These symptoms are generally mild, but in a minority of patients can be severe and chronic.

Lilly conducted a four-week study of 225 patients, stabilized in treatment for depression for four to 24 months with either Prozac (20, 40 or 60mg/day), Zoloft (50, 100 or 150mg/day) or Paxil (20, 40 or 60mg/day). Patients were then randomized, in a double-blind fashion, to receive placebo substitution for five to eight days at either week two or week three.