Imipramine

Imipramine, sold under the brand name Tofranil, among others, is a tricyclic antidepressant (TCA) mainly used in the treatment of depression. It is also effective in treating anxiety and panic disorder. Imipramine is taken by mouth.

Common side effects of imipramine include dry mouth, drowsiness, dizziness, low blood pressure, rapid heart rate, urinary retention, and electrocardiogram changes. Overdose of the medication can result in death. Imipramine appears to work by increasing levels of serotonin and norepinephrine and by blocking certain serotonin, adrenergic, histamine, and cholinergic receptors.

Imipramine was discovered in 1951 and was introduced for medical use in 1957. It was the first TCA to be marketed. Imipramine and the other TCAs (besides amitriptyline, which, at least in the U.K., remains at least just as commonly-prescribed as SSRIs) have decreased in use in recent decades, due to the introduction of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), which, although generally significantly less potent in terms of clinical efficacy per-se, have fewer inherent side effects and are far safer in overdose. Irrespective of these caveats, however, imipramine has an invaluable place in psychiatry and other fields of medicine (e.g., with childhood enuresis), and is considered the "gold standard" for panic disorder.