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Tricyclic antidepressants are a class of antidepressant drugs

first used in the 1960s. They were discovered by accident, in that one

drug in this class was intended to treat tuberculosis. It was found

that it was not suitable for this purpose as the drug elevated the mood

of the patients making them less likely to rest, as was necessary for

their condition.

Tricyclic antidepressants are not addictive. Although they remain effective, they have been increasingly replaced by

SSRIs because the difference between

a therapeutic and a toxic dose of a tricyclic antidepressant is small. Like monoamine oxidase inhibitors, this posed a

difficulty for the physician in that they were prescribing a

medication for a depressed person that could be used to

commit suicide.

/Talk