Antidepressant Vilazodone Superior to Placebo, Plus No Sexual Side Effects
Vilazodone (Viibryd) was approved by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) as an antidepressant in 2011. The drug is a serotonin 5-HT reuptake inhibitor and a partial agonist of the serotonin 5-HT1A receptor like the anti-anxiety drug buspirone (Buspar). Neither buspirone nor vilazodone is associated with significant sexual dysfunction, unlike most of the antidepressants that only inhibit the serotonin transporter (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors or SSRIs). Researcher Leslie Citrome et al. reported at the 2014 meeting of the American Psychiatric Association that at 40mg/day, the rate of remission was 32% on vilazodone versus 20% on placebo.
At the same meeting, researcher Carl Gommoll et al. reported on vilazodone’s side effects. The drug was generally well-tolerated. Side effects that occurred in 5% or more of the patients taking vilazodone and half as many taking placebo included diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, and insomnia.
