This belongs to the group of medicines known as reversible monoamine-oxidase inhibitors.
Moclobemide is used to treat depression. It can also be used to help people who are experiencing difficulty dealing with other people.

Moclobemide is available in tablet form.

It is also sometimes known as: Manerix. You may notice the use of any of these names on the packaging of your medicine.

Why is this drug prescribed?

Manerix tablets contain the active ingredient moclobemide, which is a type of antidepressant known as a reversible inhibitor of monoamine oxidase type A . Moclobemide is also available without a brand name, ie as the generic drug. Depression is a complicated disease that is not fully understood. It is thought that depression may be linked to an imbalance of chemicals within the brain. When depression occurs, there may be a decrease in the amount of certain chemicals released from nerve cells in the brain. These chemicals are called monoamines and include noradrenaline, dopamine and serotonin. Monoamines in the brain are broken down by a chemical called monoamine oxidase A. Moclobemide prevents the action of this chemical, and so stops it from breaking down the monoamines. This results in an increased amount of active monoamines in the brain. By increasing the amount of monoamines in the brain, the imbalance of chemicals thought to cause depression is altered. This helps relieve depression. Moclobemide may also be used in the treatment of social phobia. It is not fully understood how it works in this illness. It may take between two to four weeks for the benefits of this drug to appear, so it is very important that you keep taking it, even if it doesn't seem to make much difference at first. If you feel your depression has got worse, or if you have any distressing thoughts or feelings in these first few weeks, then you should talk to your doctor.

Treatments

* Major depression * Fear of social situations.

What side effects can this drug cause?

* Disturbed sleep * Dizziness * Disturbances of the gut such as diarrhoea, constipation, nausea, vomiting or abdominal pain * Headache * Anxiety and restlessness * Agitation * Pins and needles * Dry mouth * Visual disturbances * Excessive fluid retention in the body tissues, resulting in swelling * Skin reactions such as rash and itch * Confusion