Why is this medication prescribed?
Paroxetine hydrochloride is used to treat depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic disorder, anxiety disorders, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD).
Paroxetine is an anti-depressant drug that affects the chemicals that nerves in the brain use to communicate with one another. These chemical messengers, called neurotransmitters, are released by one nerve and taken up by other nerves. Neurotransmitters that are released but not taken up by other nerves are taken up by the nerves that release them ("reuptake").
Many experts believe that it is an imbalance among the amounts of the different neurotransmitters that are released that causes depression. Paroxetine works by inhibiting the reuptake of serotonin by the nerves that release it, an action which allows more serotonin to be available to be taken up by other nerves.
Paroxetine is in a class of drugs called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), a class that also contains fluoxetine (Prozac®) and sertraline (Zoloft®).
Dosage and using this medicine
What special precautions should I follow?
What should I do if I forget a dose?
What side effects can this medication cause?