What does desipramine mean?
Desipramine is a tricyclic antidepressant, a class of drugs developed from mid-twentieth-century research into treatments for depression. Chemically, it is the demethylated metabolite of imipramine, meaning it is formed in the body when imipramine is processed, and it was later marketed in its own right under names such as Norpramin. The drug works mainly by increasing the availability of norepinephrine in the brain, and to a lesser extent serotonin. Although newer medications such as SSRIs have largely displaced tricyclics as first-line treatments, desipramine is still prescribed for depression and sometimes for neuropathic pain, attention-deficit symptoms, or other conditions. Because blood concentrations vary widely among patients and high levels can be dangerous, clinicians typically monitor dosing carefully. In everyday language, the word appears almost exclusively in medical writing and prescriptions rather than general conversation.
nounA tricyclic antidepressant drug used chiefly to treat depression and, in some cases, chronic pain or ADHD; it is the active demethylated metabolite of imipramine.
- The tricyclic antidepressant drug desipramine hydrochloride, used to treat depression and certain other conditions.
"The psychiatrist switched her from amitriptyline to desipramine because it caused less daytime drowsiness."
"Blood levels of desipramine are often monitored because therapeutic windows vary widely between patients."
"Some clinicians still prescribe desipramine off-label for neuropathic pain."
Rarely used; appears only when referring to multiple doses, preparations, or measured amounts of the drug.
"The study compared blood concentrations across several desipramines administered at equivalent doses."
Desipramine wasn't invented so much as discovered inside another drug — it is literally what your liver turns imipramine into.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of desipramine
The name desipramine is a condensed coinage from 'desmethylimipramine', reflecting its identity as the N-desmethyl metabolite of the older tricyclic antidepressant imipramine, which was introduced in the late 1950s. The '-pramine' element recurs across this family of drugs, including clomipramine and trimipramine, all derived from imipramine's chemical naming lineage. The drug came into clinical use during the 1960s as its distinct pharmacological profile was recognized.
How desipramine is actually used
Strictly a pharmaceutical term; encountered almost exclusively in medical, psychiatric, and pharmacological contexts. It is a mass noun with no plural in ordinary use, though plural forms appear when referring to multiple formulations or doses.
Easily confused with desipramine
Imipramine is the parent tricyclic drug from which desipramine is derived by demethylation; desipramine is its more noradrenergically active metabolite.