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Campagne, 2005 Venlafaxine and Serious Withdrawal Symptoms: Warning to Drivers


Altostrata

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Venlafaxine withdrawal summarized, with a speculation about withdrawal-induced "electrical sensations" known to patients as "brain zaps." (Added emphases mine.)

MedGenMed. 2005 Jul 6;7(3):22.
Venlafaxine and serious withdrawal symptoms: warning to drivers.
Campagne DM.

Abstract and full text at http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16369248

Venlafaxine is a widely used serotonin- and norepinephrine-reuptake inhibitor-type antidepressant that causes serious adverse effects in at least 5% of cases. Serious withdrawal symptoms may occur within hours of cessation or reduction of the usual dosage and may affect motor and coordination skills to such a degree that patients should be explicitly urged either to adhere to a strict medication routine or not to drive a car. Recent clinical evidence about withdrawal symptoms is presented that may indicate incidents in noradrenergic activity irrespective of dosage.

 

 

From the paper:

Venlafaxine and Serious Withdrawal Symptoms: Warning to Drivers
Daniel M. Campagne, PhD
Medscape General Medicine. 2005;7(3):22 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1681629/

Venlafaxine is a widely used serotonin- and norepinephrine-reuptake inhibitor-type antidepressant.... Serious withdrawal symptoms may occur within hours of cessation or reduction of the usual dosage and may affect motor and coordination skills to such a degree that patients should be explicitly urged either to adhere to a strict medication routine or not to drive a car. Recent clinical evidence about withdrawal symptoms is presented that may indicate incidents in noradrenergic activity irrespective of dosage.

Objective: To present clinical information and a brief review of severe venlafaxine withdrawal symptoms that may occur within hours after cessation and affect the ability to drive a motor vehicle or use heavy or dangerous machinery.

Method: Review of own and third-party clinical records. Search in PubMed and other databases with terms: venlafaxine, discontinuation, withdrawal, syndrome, serotonin, noradrenaline, noradrenergic, serotonergic, seizures, epilepsy.

Serotonin, Noradrenaline Withdrawal

Venlafaxine hydrochloride (Effexor, Dobupal) is a phenylethylamine-derivative antidepressant and anxiolytic agent that acts as a serotonin- and noradrenaline-reuptake inhibitor (SNRI). It is used primarily in major depressive disorder, with labeled uses including generalized anxiety disorder and social phobia. Nonlabeled uses include depressive symptom remission, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and chronic pain syndromes.

....Among the adverse effects are a number of withdrawal symptoms that form "discontinuance syndromes," sometimes mistakenly identified with what Sternbach in 1991 proposed as the "serotonin syndrome".[2] Venlafaxine's half-life is only 4 hours. Its primary metabolite, O-desmethylvenlafaxine, has a half-life of 10 hours. In the past 10 years, a number of clinical reports of severe venlafaxine withdrawal symptoms have been published, and for the most part these effects are duly reflected in generally available information. Widely consulted drug information services, such as Medscape DrugInfo, American Hospital Formulary Service Drug Information, and First DataBank, list the following withdrawal symptoms as "serious": agitation, anorexia, anxiety, confusion, impaired coordination, diarrhea, dizziness, dry mouth, dysphoric mood, fasciculation, fatigue, headaches, hypomania, insomnia, nausea, nervousness, nightmares, sensory disturbances (including shock-like electrical sensations), somnolence, sweating, tremor, vertigo, and vomiting.

Patient hand-outs contain several useful warnings and physicians know that, because any psychoactive drug may impair judgment, thinking, or motor skills, patients should be cautioned about operating hazardous machinery, including automobiles, until they are reasonably certain that venlafaxine does not adversely affect their ability to engage in such activities. Venlafaxine is structurally similar to phencyclidine and thus should not be discontinued abruptly. If the drug has been administered for longer than 1 week, the dose should be tapered over 7 to 10 days to prevent a withdrawal syndrome (headache, nausea, dizziness, insomnia, and nervousness).[3]

However, little mention is found of the possibly severe effects of abrupt discontinuation or postponing ingestion of the daily dose for as little as 8 to 12 hours. Although a patient may have established that taking the drug does not noticeably affect the ability to drive a car or operate machinery, taking the drug in the evening if it is usually taken in the morning or forgetting to take the daily dose just once may induce sudden and severe disturbances in physical and mental condition that most definitely can impair normal functioning.

Recent Case Histories: Withdrawal Effects Are Not Dose-Dependent

Case 1: Standard Dose. Female, white, age 35, no other pathologies, diagnosed for major depressive disorder with anger attacks. Treated with extended-release venlafaxine 150 mg for 4 months with concurrent psychotherapy, with positive results: Beck's Depression Inventory score reduced from 38 to 14; functionality restored.

The patient ran out of medication on a Thursday and could not get in touch with her doctor until the next Monday. On Friday, only 12 hours after the usual time of taking the medication, she felt a noticeable change in mood, dizziness, and nausea. She experienced a sensation in her head as if electrical discharges "popped" and could not concentrate to the extent that she was unable to drive her car back from where she had gone. By Friday evening (18 hours after cessation), the "popping" in her head had become worse and she vomited after dinner. Depression symptoms reappeared acutely, and she could not stop crying. At first, she did not equate these symptoms to the missed dose of venlafaxine, but thought she might have contracted the flu. However, the symptoms continued and intensified over the weekend and only reduced when, on Monday, she started again on venlafaxine. She was inadvertently given the lower dose of 75 mg, which did not quite restore her mood to the previous level, although the "electrical popping" sensation in her head stopped and the nausea was reduced.

Case 2: High Dose. (Provided by J. Garcia Campayo, MD, PhD, Dept of Psychiatry, Miguel Servet Hospital, University of Zaragoza, Spain)

Female, white, age 43, first diagnosis of major depressive disorder of moderate intensity; maternal history of depressive disorder. Successfully treated with 225 mg of venlafaxine (75-75-75) for 12 months with no adverse effects. The patient decided she could do without the medication and stopped taking it abruptly. Withdrawal effects appeared within a day and included headaches, dizziness, and instability, with a sense of losing balance (although she did not actually fall down), sense of sparks and electrical discharges in her head, and intense anxiety. When treatment at the original level was reinstated and progressively reduced over a period of 2 weeks, the symptoms disappeared.

Case 3: Low Dose. (Provided by N. Mjellem, MD, PhD, CEO World Federation of Biological Psychiatry, Oslo, Norway)

Physician (psychiatrist), female, white, age 54, major depressive disorder (recurrent). Took 37.5 mg venlafaxine daily for 3 weeks. Experienced side effects while taking the low doses of the medication, such as aggressive and paranoid behavior after limited consumption of alcohol, frequent headaches, and tinnitus. The last symptom made her work situation difficult, so she tapered the medication at 18.75 mg over a 2-week period. Neurologic symptoms appeared during the tapering phase, including lasting severe dizziness and short, intense feelings of electrical currents in her head, causing disorientation.

The symptoms disappeared, only to reappear 2 weeks after termination was complete and persisted for some weeks more.

....
Venlafaxine withdrawal symptoms can be severe. Even a relatively short delay in taking the daily dose could severely impair motor skills.[4-8] At present this is insufficiently reflected in patient handouts and the physician may not sufficiently point out the need for a strict adherence to a fixed medication routine.

....A Role for Noradrenaline

[Note from Altostrata: The author tries to puzzle out what causes withdrawal "brain zaps" and does not succeed. It is probably not due to strictly noradrenergic or serotonergic activity, but a more generalized neurological dysregulation.]

....However, during withdrawal of venlafaxine, both serotonin and noradrenaline levels decrease instead of increase, ruling out toxic levels of serotonin and noradrenaline as a probable cause of the withdrawal symptoms, that can be hypothesized to result from a (too) rapid deprivation of neurotransmitter levels. Which neurotransmitters apart from 5-HT (2A) antagonists are involved may be deduced from some of the less often-reported withdrawal symptoms, such as the "electrical discharges in the head." These symptoms are similar to preseizure symptoms in epilepsy, and there is now evidence of the relevant role of the noradrenergic system in modulating seizures,[13] providing further evidence that noradrenergic and/or serotonergic deficits may contribute to epilepsy and depression.[14] Although this does not necessarily establish a link between epileptiform manifestations and venlafaxine withdrawal, it does suggest that some of the venlafaxine-withdrawal symptoms are more likely to be caused by a lack of noradrenergic than of serotonergic action, contrary to the commonly accepted theory.[15] ....Among the few case reports available, a recent report again attributes this symptom to a serotonin effect, possibly confounding the withdrawal effects of venlafaxine with a serotonin syndrome.[5] In this case, the authors refer to the "buzz" noted upon withdrawal in approximately 5% of patients treated with SSRIs and hypothesize that the sensations may be a form of paresthesias. However, the clinical evidence they provide gives contradictory information. Their patient no.1 was taken off venlafaxine but given fluoxetine, whereupon the brain shocks started, so the symptoms appeared to be caused either by venlafaxine withdrawal or by an unlikely serotonin syndrome. Their patient no.2 was gradually tapered from venlafaxine but given citalopram and also experienced the shocklike sensations. Finally, they cite the case of a 72-year-old woman in whom venlafaxine withdrawal symptoms were readily relieved by sertraline, but not by maprotiline, and 3 other cases that were "treated successfully by fluoxetine." The authors rightfully indicated that "an unexplained aspect of our two patients is that the addition of an SSRI, which theoretically would result in an increase of serotonin, did not alleviate withdrawal symptoms..."

The 3 case reports presented here suggest that this specific venlafaxine withdrawal symptom [electrical sensations] appears irrespective of dosage. Although venlafaxine in the lower daily dose range (18.75 to 75 mg) blocks reuptake of serotonin more than reuptake of noradrenaline, all SSRIs and SSNRIs affect both serotonin and noradrenaline levels, depending on their specificity. The particular withdrawal effect discussed here compares more closely to preseizure signs than to paresthesias [see http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/1511-skaehill-1997-ssri-withdrawal-syndrome/ regarding Lhermitte's sign], and thus could be attributed to noradrenergic more than serotoninergic action.

....The Need for a Warning to Drivers

As discussed, withdrawal symptoms occur in patients who have received both low and high doses of venlafaxine and result in a discontinuance syndrome with several manifestations, especially severe dizziness and disorientation, that are incompatible with driving a car or using heavy or dangerous machinery. Although standard warnings are given that taking the drug may affect those abilities, and patients are also generally advised not to stop the medication abruptly, severe withdrawal symptoms, such as confusion, impaired coordination, sensory disturbances, vertigo, delirium, strokelike symptoms, and depersonalization, may occur only hours after reduction or cessation and should warrant a specific "warning to drivers." Whenever venlafaxine is not taken at the usual time or in the usual quantity, special caution is warranted. Even when the dosage is being tapered, the physician should instruct the patient to beware of these symptoms, because the recommended tapering period of 2 weeks is not necessarily sufficient. Cases have been documented in which even tapering over a period of 3 months was insufficient.[16]

Venlafaxine is a widely used antidepressant. The World Health Organization asserts that SSRI and SSRNI antidepressants cause dependence and that discontinuation symptoms can be troublesome and persist notwithstanding taper therapy.[17] The specific symptoms that can result from venlafaxine reduction or discontinuation as reviewed here seriously impair driving ability and should be prevented by strict dosage discipline and adequate warnings.

References

US Food and Drug Administration: Letter to Wyeth Pharmaceuticals about violation of FDA regulations. March 18, 2004. Available at: http://www.fda.gov/cder/warn/2004/Effexor.pdf Accessed June 20, 2005.

Sternbach H. The serotonin syndrome. Am J Psychiatry. 1991;148:705-713. Abstract

Ellingrod VL, Perry PJ. Venlafaxine: a heterocyclic antidepressant. Am J Hosp Pharmacy. 1994;51:3033-3046.

Pinzani V, Ginies E, Robert L, Peyriere H, Abbar M, Blayac JP. Venlafaxine withdrawal syndrome: report of six cases and review of the literature. Rev Med Interne. 2000;21:282-284. Abstract

Parker G, Blennerhassett J. Withdrawal reactions associated with venlafaxine. Aust N Z J Psychiatry. 1998;32:291-294. Abstract

Reeves RR, Mack JE, Beddingfield JJ. Shock-like sensations during venlafaxine withdrawal. Pharmacotherapy. 2003;23:678-681. Abstract

van Noorden MS, Vergouwen AC, Koerselman GF. Delirium during withdrawal of venlafaxine. Ned Tijdschr Geneeskd. 2001;29:146:1236-1237.

Haddad PM, Devarajan S, Dursun SM. Antidepressant discontinuation withdrawal symptoms presenting as 'stroke'. J Psychopharmacol. 2001;15:139-141. Abstract

Houlihan DJ. Serotonin syndrome resulting from coadministration of tramadol, venlafaxine, and mirtazapine. Ann Pharmacother. 2004;38:411-413. Epub 2004 Jan 23

Jaunay E, Gaillac V, Guelfi JD. Serotonin syndrome. Which treatment and when? Presse Med. 2001;17:30:1695-1700.

Nisijima K, Shioda K, Yoshino T, Takano K, Kato S. Diazepam and chlormethiazole attenuate the development of hyperthermia in an animal model of the serotonin syndrome. Neurochem Int. 2003;43:155-164. Abstract

Pan JJ, Shen WW. Serotonin syndrome induced by low-dose venlafaxine. Ann Pharmacother. 2003;37:209-211. Abstract

Giorgi FS, Ferrucci M, Lazzeri G, et al. A damage to locus coeruleus neurons converts sporadis seizures into self-sustaining limbic status epilepticus. Eur J Neurosci. 2003;17:2593-2601. Abstract

Jobe PC, Dailey JW, Wernicke JF. A noradrenergic and serotonergic hypothesis of the linkage between epilepsy and affective disorders. Cit Rev Neurobiol. 1999;13:317-356.

Gutierrez MA, Stimmel GL, Aiso JY. Venlafaxine: a 2003 update. Clin Ther. 2003;25:2138-2154. Abstract

Sierra Santos L, Raigal Martin Y, Ortega Garcia A, Berriochoa Martinez de Pison C, Aparicio Jabalquinto G: Venlafaxina y sindrome de discontinuación. Atencion Primaria. 1999;24:617-618.

Selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors and withdrawal reactions. WHO Drug Information. 1998;12:3, 136.

US Food and Drug Administration: Letter to Wyeth Pharmaceuticals about violation of FDA regulations. March 18, 2004. Available at: http://www.fda.gov/cder/warn/2004/Effexor.pdf Accessed June 20, 2005.

Sternbach H. The serotonin syndrome. Am J Psychiatry. 1991;148:705-713. Abstract

Ellingrod VL, Perry PJ. Venlafaxine: a heterocyclic antidepressant. Am J Hosp Pharmacy. 1994;51:3033-3046.

Pinzani V, Ginies E, Robert L, Peyriere H, Abbar M, Blayac JP. Venlafaxine withdrawal syndrome: report of six cases and review of the literature. Rev Med Interne. 2000;21:282-284. Abstract

Parker G, Blennerhassett J. Withdrawal reactions associated with venlafaxine. Aust N Z J Psychiatry. 1998;32:291-294. Abstract

Reeves RR, Mack JE, Beddingfield JJ. Shock-like sensations during venlafaxine withdrawal. Pharmacotherapy. 2003;23:678-681. Abstract

van Noorden MS, Vergouwen AC, Koerselman GF. Delirium during withdrawal of venlafaxine. Ned Tijdschr Geneeskd. 2001;29:146:1236-1237.

Haddad PM, Devarajan S, Dursun SM. Antidepressant discontinuation withdrawal symptoms presenting as 'stroke'. J Psychopharmacol. 2001;15:139-141. Abstract

Houlihan DJ. Serotonin syndrome resulting from coadministration of tramadol, venlafaxine, and mirtazapine. Ann Pharmacother. 2004;38:411-413. Epub 2004 Jan 23

Jaunay E, Gaillac V, Guelfi JD. Serotonin syndrome. Which treatment and when? Presse Med. 2001;17:30:1695-1700.

Nisijima K, Shioda K, Yoshino T, Takano K, Kato S. Diazepam and chlormethiazole attenuate the development of hyperthermia in an animal model of the serotonin syndrome. Neurochem Int. 2003;43:155-164. Abstract

Pan JJ, Shen WW. Serotonin syndrome induced by low-dose venlafaxine. Ann Pharmacother. 2003;37:209-211. Abstract

Giorgi FS, Ferrucci M, Lazzeri G, et al. A damage to locus coeruleus neurons converts sporadis seizures into self-sustaining limbic status epilepticus. Eur J Neurosci. 2003;17:2593-2601. Abstract

Jobe PC, Dailey JW, Wernicke JF. A noradrenergic and serotonergic hypothesis of the linkage between epilepsy and affective disorders. Cit Rev Neurobiol. 1999;13:317-356.

Gutierrez MA, Stimmel GL, Aiso JY. Venlafaxine: a 2003 update. Clin Ther. 2003;25:2138-2154. Abstract

Sierra Santos L, Raigal Martin Y, Ortega Garcia A, Berriochoa Martinez de Pison C, Aparicio Jabalquinto G: Venlafaxina y sindrome de discontinuación. Atencion Primaria. 1999;24:617-618.

Selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors and withdrawal reactions. WHO Drug Information. 1998;12:3, 136.

Edited by Altostrata
updated

This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.

"It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein

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Well it's good that he's acknowledging Effexor withdrawal is a problem, but I've no idea why he thinks its specific to Effexor. I've had brain shocks while on other antidepressants, and its widely reported here and elsewhere.

2003-2011: Paroxetine,Citalopram,Effexor; Aug/Sept 2011: Effexor to Mirtazapine; Oct 2011: C/T Mirtazapine back to Effexor; Nov/Dec 2011: Fast Tapered Effexor - w/d hell; Feb 2012: Reinstated Effexor 37.5mg; June 2012: Dropped to 35.6mg; Jan 2016: Propranolol 2.5mg per day for general anxiety; Feb 2016: Finasteride 0.25mg per week to slow hair loss; 18th May - 8th June 2019: Started Vyvanse 7.5mg and increased by 7.5mg weekly to 30mg (lowest “therapeutic” dose for adults).; 21st June 2019 - 12th July: Cross tapered from venlafaxine brand Rodomel to Efexor (1/4 > 1/2 > 3/4 weekly before ditching Rodomel); 13th July 2019: Cut Vyvanse dose to 15mg; 15th July 2019: Akathisia returned after years of being free; 16th July 2019: Went back up to Vyvanse 30mg

Supplements: Omega-3, Vitamin D, Zinc, Phosphatidylserine 

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It's because he doesn't know anything about withdrawal in general, and he's trying to generalize from his understanding of venlafaxine.

This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.

"It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein

All postings © copyrighted.

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  • 1 year later...
  • Administrator

bumping

This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.

"It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein

All postings © copyrighted.

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Well it's good that he's acknowledging Effexor withdrawal is a problem, but I've no idea why he thinks its specific to Effexor. I've had brain shocks while on other antidepressants, and its widely reported here and elsewhere.

I have been on a few antidepressants but none of them caused the wild brain zaps I had in tolerance or in withdrawal from effexor.. they were truly disabling no other withdrawal or ad use caused anything like this for me personally.  

I seriously had to stay in bed as moving my eyes would cause brain zaps that would have me falling down.. with dizziness... I also had body zaps where the shocks went down my arms and legs right through to my fingers and toes. 

Other drugs caused me to have what I would call shimmers where I would feel a buzzing in my head and a feeling like my head was full of bromo seltzer but only effexor ...causes already listed gave me electric like shocks that were disabling.  

I am not saying other drugs do not cause this for other people I am just stating my experience there is no "not noticing" or "ignoring" it like I could and did do with other kind alike reactions on other drugs.  Not even close to the same for me. 

peace

WARNING THIS WILL BE LONG
Had a car accident in 85
Codeine was the pain med when I was release from hosp continuous use till 89
Given PROZAC by a specialist to help with nerve pain in my leg 89-90 not sure which year
Was not told a thing about it being a psych med thought it was a pain killer no info about psych side effects I went nuts had hallucinations. As I had a head injury and was diagnosed with a concussion in 85 I was sent to a head injury clinic in 1990 five years after the accident. I don't think they knew I had been on prozac I did not think it a big deal and never did finish the bottle of pills. I had tests of course lots of them. Was put into a pain clinic and given amitriptyline which stopped the withdrawal but had many side effects. But I could sleep something I had not done in a very long time the pain lessened. My mother got cancer in 94 they switched my meds to Zoloft to help deal with this pressure as I was her main care giver she died in 96. I stopped zoloft in 96 had withdrawal was put on paxil went nutty quit it ct put on resperidol quit it ct had withdrawal was put on Effexor... 2years later celexa was added 20mg then increased to 40mg huge personality change went wild. Did too fast taper off Celexa 05 as I felt unwell for a long time prior... quit Effexor 150mg ct 07 found ****** 8 months into withdrawal learned some things was banned from there in 08 have kept learning since. there is really not enough room here to put my history but I have a lot of opinions about a lot of things especially any of the drugs mentioned above.
One thing I would like to add here is this tidbit ALL OPIATES INCREASE SEROTONIN it is not a huge jump to being in chronic pain to being put on an ssri/snri and opiates will affect your antidepressants and your thinking.

As I do not update much I will put my quit date Nov. 17 2007 I quit Effexor cold turkey. 

http://survivingantidepressants.org/index.php?/topic/1096-introducing-myself-btdt/

There is a crack in everything ..That's how the light gets in :)

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  • 3 years later...

I found this article shortly after I began weaning from venlafaxine and started suffering "narcolepsy-like" symptoms along with my general confusion and disorientation. 

I was pleased to find it already on the site. Then I kept reading... It seems my experience is further mimicked by the article you posted : Wang, 2013 regarding a "narcolepsy" type state observed in another instance of venlafaxine withdrawal. Until reading these two papers, I thought I was the only one...

Ativan 1or2mg PRN: 2003 - present 

Paxil up to 60mg: Aug 2005 - Feb 2013

Adderall XR Varied dosages on and off: 1994? - present

Pristiq 100mg: Feb 2013 - Feb 2014

Effexor XR 150mg: Feb 2014 - Jun 2016; then gradual taper. D/C'd in Nov 2017.

Xanax 1mg: PRN 1998 - Jan 2018

Zoloft 200 mg: 2016, Taper then CT Dec 2017 AMA. Destroyed my life. And everyone I love. 

Prozac 5mg daily: JAN 2018 - OCT 2018, CT'D against my will and despite my protests.

 

Current: (NOV 2018) Ativan 1mg prn, Adderall XR 15mg daily, Clonidine 0.1mg twice daily

 

 

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  • 3 weeks later...
  • Administrator

Yes, all the adverse effects of withdrawal have been documented -- except how long it might last.

This is not medical advice. Discuss any decisions about your medical care with a knowledgeable medical practitioner.

"It has become appallingly obvious that our technology has surpassed our humanity." -- Albert Einstein

All postings © copyrighted.

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