Serotonin syndrome induced by transitioning from phenelzine to venlafaxine: four patient reports.

With the use of the newer antidepressants beyond the traditional tricyclics and monoamine oxidase inhibitors, newer options in headache prophylaxis are provided as well as the potential for undesirable and even potentially life-threatening interactions between medications. In this article, four patient reports of a specific interaction--the serotonin syndrome--are presented. These events resulted from transitioning headache patients from an older antidepressant (phenelzine) to a newer antidepressant (venlafaxine).