New Medicines Service
A third of antidepressant items may be newly prescribed but historical data suggests that SSRI adherence could halve within the first two months without appropriate support interventions.6,7,8
Since October 2025, to help improve antidepressant adherence, the New Medicine Service (NMS) has included eight licensed antidepressant drugs for depression in adults aged 18 years and older. These are:9,10,11
|
Drug |
Brand names* |
Activity type |
|
citalopram hydrobromide |
Cipramil (film-coated tablets) |
SSRI |
|
citalopram hydrochloride |
Cipramil (drops) |
|
|
escitalopram |
Cipralex, Enalto |
|
|
fluoxetine hydrochloride |
Olena, Prozep |
|
|
paroxetine hydrochloride |
(Seroxat – disc.) |
|
|
sertraline hydrochloride |
Lustral |
|
|
duloxetine hydrochloride |
(Cymbalta disc. Yentreve disc.) |
SNRI |
|
mirtazapine |
|
NaSSA |
* in addition to generic products
· Citalopram, escitalopram, fluoxetine, paroxetine and sertraline are selective serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine/5-HT) reuptake inhibitors (SSRI).11
· Duloxetine is a combined serotonin and noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor (SNRI).11
· Mirtazapine, a noradrenergic and specific serotonergic antidepressant (NaSSA), is a centrally active presynaptic α2-antagonist, which increases central noradrenergic and serotonergic neurotransmission.11