Skip to main content

Antidepressant Discontinuation Syndrome

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Quick Guide to Psychiatric Emergencies

Abstract

The etiology of antidepressant discontinuation syndrome is not fully understood but it tends to occur after the abrupt discontinuation of an antidepressant, though may also occur even with a taper.It is known to occur with monoamine oxidize inhibitors (MAOI), tricyclic antidepressants (TCA), selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI), serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRI) and atypical antidepressants.The syndrome can occur with missing only one dose of medications with short half-lives, such as paroxetine and venlafaxine. Symptoms can last for weeks, sometimes longer.It is important to recognize this syndrome in order to avoid very costly work ups.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Fava GA, Gatti A, Belaise C, Guidi J, Offidani E. Withdrawal symtpoms after selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor discontinuation: a systematic review. Psychother Psychosom. 2015;84:72–81.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Schatzberg AF, Blier P, Delgado PL, Fava M, Haddad PM, Shelton RC. Antidepressant discontinuation syndrome: consensus panel recommendations for clinical management and additional research. J Clin Psychiatry. 2006;67(Suppl4):27–30.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Lejoyeux M, Ades J, Mourad S, Solomon J, Dilsaver S. Antidepressant withdrawal syndrome: recognition, prevention and management. CNS Drugs. 1996;5(4):278–92.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Shelton RC. Steps following attainment of remission: discontinuation of antidepressant therapy. Prim Care Companion J Clin Psychiatry. 2001;3(4):168–74.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Kimberly D. Nordstrom M.D., J.D .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2018 Springer International Publishing AG

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Corbett, B., Nordstrom, K.D. (2018). Antidepressant Discontinuation Syndrome. In: Nordstrom, K., Wilson, M. (eds) Quick Guide to Psychiatric Emergencies. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-58260-3_45

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-58260-3_45

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-58258-0

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-58260-3

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics