SSRE - Selective Serotonin Reuptake Enhancer
Also referred to as a Specific Serotonin Reuptake Antagonist (SSRA)
Please note: Dosage equivalents are provided for certain drugs below and are denoted as unit equivalents, i.e. one unit of drug x is roughly the equivalent as one unit of drug y, where the dosage equal to one unit varies.
SSRE medications are antidepressant drugs that exert a mood elevation on the patient by altering the level of the monoamine neurotransmitter serotonin within the brain.
SSRE drugs are considered to be third generation antidepressants and have a novel neurochemical profile; in contrast with every other antidepressant that acts upon serotonin, SSRE medications accelerate (enhance) the reuptake of serotonin instead of inhibiting it.
Tianeptine
At the time of writing, Tianeptine is the only available SSRE antidepressant available. In terms of chemical structure, Tianeptine is somewhat similar to tricyclic antidepressants, yet its mode of action is quite different. Whilst tricyclic antidepressants inhibit the reuptake of monoamine neurotransmitters such as serotonin, Tianeptine specifically encourages the reuptake of serotonin; the mechanism by which this is achieved is unknown at the time of writing.
Tianeptine has a marked antidepressant and anxiolytic impact on patients. Approximately 78% of subjects respond positively to the medication and is neither sedating nor stimulating. Comparatively, Tianeptine has very few major side effects, making it a solid treatment for elderly and/or susceptible patients. The most common side effects are a dry mouth (20% chance), insomnia and/or nightmares (20% chance), constipation (15% chance), dizziness (13% chance) and postural hypotension (3% chance).
Tianeptine has a very low capacity for abuse; one patient in particular took an average of 240 tablets per day for a number of months; he was successfully detoxified as an inpatient.