Posted by SalArmy4me on May 14, 2001, at 22:12:04
In reply to More Mirapex..., posted by Alex J on May 14, 2001, at 21:30:18
I know that ChrisK and AndrewB on this board have had some success with the dopamine-agonist Mirapex in depression. I tried it briefly, too. I didn't have any side-effects on it.
Here are some advantages of Mirapex:
--It has a benign side-effect profile, with most patients reporting nausea as the main side-effect. But that side-effect may have been from the levodopa that the Parkinsons' patients were also taking during the clinical trials.
--Mirapex is definitely less expensive than Prozac or Wellbutrin. 100 of the 1.5 mg Mirapex tablets costs $80 on insurance at the largest HMO in the US. Prozac and Paxil are definitely more costly.
--It has few anticholinergic effects.
--It is not known to cause sexual dysfunction.
--Though it probably has to be taken three times a day, so does Neurontin, Wellbutrin IR, Effexor IR, and Visken.
--Mirapex has two studies done on it in non-Parkinsons' patients--one for unipolar depression and the other for bipolar disorder.
--It has minimal drug interactions as compared to Tricylcics Antidepressants or MAOI's (& RIMA's).Thus, if it works for you, its a good deal.
--Studies on Medline:
2. Pramipexole augmentation in the treatment of unipolar and bipolar depression: a retrospective chart review Ann Clin Psychiatry. 2000 Sep;12(3):137-40.3: Maj J, Rogoz Z.
Synergistic effect of pramipexole and sertraline in the forced swimming test. Pol J Pharmacol. 1999 Nov-Dec;51(6):471-5.4: Corrigan MH, Denahan AQ, Wright CE, Ragual RJ, Evans DL. Comparison of pramipexole, fluoxetine, and placebo in patients with major depression. Depress Anxiety. 2000;11(2):58-65.
5: DeBattista C, Solvason HB, Breen JA, Schatzberg AF. Pramipexole augmentation of a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor in the treatment of depression. J Clin Psychopharmacol. 2000 Apr;20(2):274-5.
6: Goldberg JF, Frye MA, Dunn RT.
Pramipexole in refractory bipolar depression.
Am J Psychiatry. 1999 May;156(5):798.7: Bennett JP, Piercey MF.
Pramipexole--a new dopamine agonist for the treatment of Parkinson's disease. J Neurol Sci. 1999 Feb 1;163(1):25-31. Review.8: Piercey MF. Pharmacology of pramipexole, a dopamine D3-preferring agonist useful in treating Parkinson's disease. Clin Neuropharmacol. 1998 May-Jun;21(3):141-51. Review.
9: Willner P.
The mesolimbic dopamine system as a target for rapid antidepressant action. Int Clin Psychopharmacol. 1997 Jul;12 Suppl 3:S7-14. Review.
poster:SalArmy4me
thread:62986
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/20010507/msgs/62997.html