However, a newly approved medication may put an end to this waiting period.
Iosifescu was part of a group that designed and carried out clinical trials for the new depression drug.
Iosifescu said it can be frustrating for patients who have to wait additional time for a medication to work.
d3sign/Moment/Getty
The difference in Auvelitys time comes from how it works in the brain.
Auvelity works on changing the levels of the neurotransmitter glutamate by acting on NMDA receptors.
Antidepressants currently on the market modulate neurotransmitters like serotonin and noradrenaline.
Auvelity would be the first medication of its kind, Iosifescu said.
The category of drugs would be known as glutamate modulators, a group that includes ketamine.
Research on ketamine as a treatment for clinical depression laid a basis for the current medication.
Auvelity works by combining two other drugs into one medication.
Dextromethorphan is an older drug that has some modulating effects.
The other drug in the combination, buproprion, is an antidepressant in its own right.
However, the purpose of bupropion in this medication is to slow the metabolism of dextromethorphan.
Although, Iosifescu said additional research is needed to look at that specifically.
Negotiations include the price of the new drug and stipulations for prescribing the medication.
When a drug is new, it typically costs significantly more than older medications.
It does not have any sort ofweight gain, Iosifescu said.
Thats sometimes a problem with some of the (older) antidepressants.
2022;83(4).
2016;19(2):35-38. doi:10.1136/eb-2016-102355
