Alternative medicine (1)
- Treatment-resistant depression: Explore options when depression doesn't get better
Coping and support (4)
- Support groups: Share experiences about depression, mental health conditions
- Depression: Supporting a family member or friend with depression
- Mental health: Overcoming the stigma of mental illness
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Definition (1)
- Mental health: What's normal, what's not
Lifestyle and home remedies (3)
- Depression and anxiety: Exercise eases symptoms
- Meditation: Take a stress-reduction break wherever you are
- Seasonal affective disorder treatment: Choosing a light therapy box
Risk factors (2)
- Depression in women: Understanding the gender gap
- Stress symptoms: Effects on your body, feelings and behavior
Tests and diagnosis (2)
- Mental health providers: Find one to suit your needs
- Cytochrome P450 (CYP450) genotyping test
Treatments and drugs (21)
- Serotonin syndrome
- Antidepressants: Are they safe during pregnancy?
- Transcranial magnetic stimulation
- see all in Treatments and drugs
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Norepinephrine and dopamine reuptake inhibitors (NDRIs)
Antidepressant NDRIs, like SNRIs, are dual reuptake inhibitors, relieving depression symptoms, such as irritability and sadness. Discover how NDRIs can boost your mood and what side effects they may cause.
By Mayo Clinic staffCertain brain chemicals called neurotransmitters are associated with depression, including the neurotransmitters norepinephrine (nor-ep-ih-NEF-rin) and dopamine (DOE-puh-mene). Research suggests that abnormalities in neurotransmitter activity can affect mood and behavior.
How NDRIs work
Norepinephrine and dopamine reuptake inhibitors (NDRIs) are a type of antidepressant medication that increases the levels of both norepinephrine and dopamine by inhibiting their reabsorption (reuptake) into cells. As with other antidepressants, the precise mechanism of action isn't clear. But it's thought that these increased levels help enhance neurotransmission — the sending of nerve impulses — and thereby improve and elevate mood.
Antidepressants, in general, may also work by playing a neuroprotective role in how they relieve anxiety and depression. It's thought that antidepressants may increase the effects of brain receptors that help nerve cells keep sensitivity to glutamate — an organic compound of a nonessential amino acid — in check. This increased support of nerve cells decreases glutamate sensitivity, providing protection against the glutamate overwhelming and exciting key brain areas related to anxiety and depression.
Antidepressant medications are often the first treatment choice for adults with moderate or severe depression, sometimes along with psychotherapy. Although antidepressants may not cure depression, they can help you achieve remission — the disappearance or nearly complete reduction of depression symptoms.
NDRIs approved to treat depression
Here is the only NDRI that has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration specifically to treat depression, with its generic, or chemical, name followed by available brand names in parentheses:
- Bupropion (Wellbutrin, Wellbutrin SR, Wellbutrin XL)
Bupropion is available in several forms: an immediate-release form taken three times a day; a slow-release, or sustained-release, (SR) form that requires taking medication twice a day; and an extended-release (XL) form that requires only a once-a-day dose. Zyban, another brand of bupropion, is available as an anti-smoking medication, not as an antidepressant.
In addition to bupropion's use as an anti-smoking therapy and an antidepressant, it may be used to treat other conditions.
Next page(1 of 2)
- Wellbutrin SR (prescribing information). Research Triangle Park, N.C.: GlaxoSmithKline; 2007. http://us.gsk.com/products/assets/us_wellbutrinSR.pdf. Accessed Oct. 9, 2008.
- Wellbutrin XL (prescribing information). Mississauga, Ontario, Canada: Biovail Corp.; 2004. http://us.gsk.com/products/assets/us_wellbutrinXL.pdf. Accessed Oct. 3, 2008.
- Zyban (prescribing information). Research Triangle Park, N.C.: GlaxoSmithKline; 2007. http://us.gsk.com/products/assets/us_zyban.pdf. Accessed Oct. 9, 2008.
- Questions and answers on antidepressant use in children, adolescents, and adults. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. http://www.fda.gov/cder/drug/antidepressants/QA20070502.htm. Accessed Sept. 29, 2008.
- FDA proposes new warnings about suicidal thinking, behavior in young adults who take antidepressant medications. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. http://www.fda.gov/bbs/topics/NEWS/2007/NEW01624.html. Accessed Sept. 12, 2008.
- Hall-Flavin DK (expert opinion). Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn. Oct. 1, 2008.
- Antidepressants: Selecting one that's right for you. MayoClinic.com. http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/antidepressants/HQ01069. Accessed Oct. 16, 2008.
