Class Explorer · Psychiatry
SNRIs
Serotonin plus noradrenaline reuptake inhibition; the noradrenaline arrives with dose and brings blood pressure along.
Open the interactive pathwayMembers
VenlafaxineAn SNRI that is mostly an SSRI at low dose and finds its noradrenaline at higher doses.DuloxetineAn antidepressant that also treats the pain, which is often the reason it is chosen.
Also in this class: Duloxetine (neuropathic pain overlap) · Desvenlafaxine. Full pages arrive as the library grows.
Compare the members
Venlafaxine
- Half-life
- 5 h (+11 h metabolite)
- Distinguishing point
- Worst missed-dose symptoms
Shared across the class
- Indications
- Depression · Anxiety disorders · Neuropathic pain (duloxetine)
- Adverse effects
- Nausea · Blood pressure elevation · Sweating · Discontinuation syndrome · Serotonin syndrome in combinations
- Contraindications
- MAO inhibitors within 14 days · Uncontrolled hypertension (relative)
- Monitoring
- Blood pressure before and after titration · Mood and safety
What makes each agent different
- Duloxetine earns its place through pain indications (diabetic neuropathy, fibromyalgia).
- Venlafaxine's discontinuation syndrome is the class's sharpest edge.
An SNRI is an SSRI with a blood-pressure check attached.
Last reviewed 2026-08-15 · Goodman & Gilman's The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics, 14th ed.