Mirtazapine: clinical advantages in the treatment of depression.

Mirtazapine is a noradrenergic and specific serotonergic antidepressant, characterized by a unique pharmacologic profile, favorable pharmacokinetics, and proven efficacy and safety. Mirtazapine has demonstrated clinical efficacy in the treatment of moderately and severely depressed patients. In addition, mirtazapine was found to be equally effective as clomipramine in the treatment of severely depressed, hospitalized patients. The overall improvement with mirtazapine is seen after 1 week of treatment and is sustained throughout the treatment period. It is paralleled by an improvement in depressed mood, the core symptom of depressive illness. Because of its unique pharmacologic profile, mirtazapine is virtually devoid of anticholinergic, adrenolytic, and serotonin-related side effects. The most frequently reported adverse events were transient sedation and weight gain.