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Elavil (Amitriptyline)

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Encyclopedia of Autism Spectrum Disorders

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Synonyms

Amitriptyline; Endep; Levate

Definition

Elavil is a tricyclic antidepressant (TCA). By blocking their reuptake by presynaptic neurons, TCAs increase the synaptic levels and action durations of noradrenaline and serotonin. Serotonin is an inhibitory neurotransmitter that is heavily involved in mood and emotion regulation and has been found to be elevated in the whole blood and platelets of ASD patients. In addition to their reuptake-inhibiting properties, TCAs also exert antagonistic effects on histamine H2, serotonin 5-HT2, α1-adrenergic, and muscarinic acetylcholine receptors. While many of these neurotransmission systems have been implicated in autism pathogenesis, the generally low receptor specificity results in a high toxicity profile. Side effects include nausea, drowsiness, weakness, dry mouth, changes in appetite or weight gain, constipation, blurred vision, increased sweating, and decreased sexual drive. Low doses of this drug do show promise in the treatment of...

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References and Reading

  • Barsa, J. A., & Saunders, J. C. (1961). Amitriptyline (Elavil), a new antidepressant. American Journal of Psychiatry, 117(8), 739–740.

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  • Bhatti, I., Thome, A., Smith, P. O., Cook-Wiens, G., Yeh, H. W., Gaffney, G. R., & Hellings, J. A. (2013). A retrospective study of amitriptyline in youth with autism spectrum disorders. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 1–11.

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  • Hurwitz, R., Blackmore, R., Hazell, P., Williams, K., & Woolfenden, S. (2012). Tricyclic antidepressants for autism spectrum disorders (ASD) in children and adolescents. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 3, CD008372.

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  • Warren, R. P., & Singh, V. K. (1996). Elevated serotonin levels in autism: Association with the major histocompatibility complex. Neuropsychobiology, 34(2), 72–75.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Autism Program, Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, 06511, New Haven, CT, USA

    Karthikeyan Ardhanareeswaran

  2. Program in Neurodevelopment and Regeneration, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA

    Karthikeyan Ardhanareeswaran

  3. Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA

    Karthikeyan Ardhanareeswaran

Authors
  1. Karthikeyan Ardhanareeswaran
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Correspondence to Karthikeyan Ardhanareeswaran .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Yale Child Study Center, New Haven, Connecticut, USA

    Fred R. Volkmar

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© 2015 Springer Science+Business Media New York

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Ardhanareeswaran, K. (2015). Elavil (Amitriptyline). In: Volkmar, F. (eds) Encyclopedia of Autism Spectrum Disorders. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6435-8_102072-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6435-8_102072-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-6435-8

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