… psychiatric research standards, the numbers were huge: 851 patients in the Effexor XR group, 748 in the SSRI group (Prozac, Paxil, and Luvox), and 446 in the placebo group. The doses of comparator SSRIs were robust enough to mirror what we actually use in clinical practice, and treatment duration...

Celexa (Citalopram) has been used in Europe since the late 1980s, and since its introduction in the U.S. market in 1998 it has made steady inroads into the SSRI market, largely because it has the reputation of being unusually well tolerated.

The latest member of the “controlled-release club” is GlaxoSmithKline, with its Paxil CR. While cynics may believe that CR launches are simply efforts to prolong patent-lives and therefore profits, the reality is that CR formulations are generally better tolerated and easier to dose.