Symbyax is prescribed to patients with depression, panic disorders, bulimia, and obsessive-compulsive disorders. Symbax is a combination of two medicines, olanzapine, which is used to treat schizophrenia, and fluoxetine, used to treat other mental disorders. Symbyax can cause harmful side effects. Like other antidepressant medications, Symbyax can cause persistent pulmonary hypertension in infants whose mothers took Symbyax while pregnant, and it can cause serotonin syndrome.
What are some important things I should know about Symbyax?
Infants whose mothers took Symbyax during pregnancy were six times as likely to develop persistent pulmonary hypertension than infants whose mothers did not take the medication. Persistent pulmonary hypertension can be deadly. Infants with the condition do not receive adequate blood and oxygen flow to the heart and lungs.
Symbyax can also cause withdrawal symptoms, an increased risk of suicide in young adults, especially during the first few months of treatment, and serotonin syndrome, which can also be deadly.
Symbyax is for people with schizophrenia, depression, panic disorders, bulimia and obsessive-compulsive disorders.
Symptoms of schizophrenia include mood swings, speaking problems, social withdrawal, decreased movement and an inability to feel pleasure. These are called “negative symptoms” of schizophrenia. Positive symptoms include delusional thinking and hearing and seeing things that are only in the imagination.
Schizophrenia is caused by an imbalance of brain chemicals, particularly dopamine and seratonin, although researchers are not certain why these chemicals become imbalanced. Some believe it is a combination of in utero exposure to viruses, malnutrition or birth complications. Schizophrenia usually starts during one’s teen years or in early adulthood.
Depression causes people to be sad, fatigued, lack interest in usual activities, experience significant change in weight, have difficulty sleeping, and have feelings of guilt or worthlessness.
Panic disorders cause people to have panic attacks, which are characterized by a racing heartbeat, sweating, nervousness, feeling dizzy, choking, distress, smothering feeling, chills or hot flashes and shortness of breath.
Bulimia is a condition in which people binge eat and then vomit in order to purge.
Obsessive-compulsive disorder is characterized by distressful, time-consuming obsessions that disrupt daily activities and that are recognized by the patient as being unreasonable and excessive.
Infants whose mothers took Symbyax during pregnancy were six times as likely to develop persistent pulmonary hypertension than infants whose mothers did not take the medication. Persistent pulmonary hypertension can be deadly. Infants with the condition do not receive adequate blood and oxygen flow to the heart and lungs.
Symbyax can also cause withdrawal symptoms, an increased risk of suicide in young adults, especially during the first few months of treatment, and serotonin syndrome, which can also be deadly. Signs of serotonin syndrome include:
- restlessness
- diarrhea
- hallucinations
- coma
- loss of coordination
- nausea
- fast heart beat
- vomiting
- increased body temperature
- abrupt changes in blood pressure
- overactive reflexes
You should contact your doctor immediately if you become pregnant, if you experience suicidal thoughts or behaviors, or if you notice signs of serotonin syndrome (listed above). You should also contact your doctor if you want to stop taking Symbyax, because stopping the medication suddenly can lead to dangerous withdrawal symptoms.