For testing various types of disorders or deficiencies in the human body, there are various drugs that are available in the market. Many medical health experts advise these medicines for treatments and cure.
These medicines and drugs are available in various forms, like shrubs and tablets. However, to cure depression, many medical health experts suggest different drugs. Two of those are Zoloft and Wellbutrin.
Key Takeaways
- Zoloft is an SSRI, while Wellbutrin is an NDRI antidepressant.
- Zoloft is used to treat anxiety, depression, and OCD, while Wellbutrin is used to treat depression and ADHD.
- Zoloft may cause sexual dysfunction, while Wellbutrin may cause insomnia and seizures.
Zoloft vs Wellbutrin
Zoloft and Wellbutrin are both used to treat depression, but they work in different ways. Zoloft is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI), while Wellbutrin is a norepinephrine-dopamine reuptake inhibitor (NDRI).
Zoloft is the brand name of the drug sertraline. It is used to treat several mental health disorders. It is used to treat and cure various disorders like anxiety disorder, panic disorder, OCD, or obsessive-compulsive disorder. It is also used in various therapies for testing these disorders, like cognitive behaviour therapy.
Wellbutrin is the brand name of bupropion. They are used for treating various mental health disorders, and many medical health advisers also prescribe these medicines for other disorders like ceasing smoking.
Other than that, it is also prescribed by doctors for treating obesity, sexual dysfunction etc. Another brand name by which this medicine is addressed is Zyban.
Comparison Table
| Parameters Of Comparison | Zoloft | Wellbutrin |
|---|---|---|
| Generic name | Sertraline | Bupropion |
| Other brand names | Lustral | Zyban |
| Side effects | Tired feeling, sleepiness, insomnia, diarrhoea, nausea, dry mouth, constipation etc. | Agitation, tinnitus, sexual side effects, body pain, tastelessness, increased sweating, urination, etc. |
| Type of | Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor | Prescription medicine |
| Increased levels of | Serotonin | Dopamine, Norepinephrine. |
What is Zoloft?
Zoloft is the brand name of Sertraline. Other than that, Zoloft is also addressed by brand names like lustral. Other than the common side effects, it also has sexual side effects.
If sertraline is consumed along with monoamine oxidase inhibitors, then there are higher chances that a person may get affected with serotonin syndrome.
In the United States of America, sertraline was accepted And approved in 1991. After that, it was made available as a generic medicine. It was created at Pfizer.
It is one of the essential medicines, and it is on the list of essential medicines by the World Health Organisation. After its release, it was prescribed by many psychiatrists for their patients.
Along with monoamine oxidase inhibitors, if a patient is sertraline is contraindicated with disulfiram. Concentration of sertraline contains alcohol in higher quantities.
The crucial information about the medicines includes that patients with liver impairment must take sertraline cautiously. Patients with liver impairment are more likely to show higher exposure to sertraline than a normal patient.
There are some adverse and common side effects of the consumption of sertraline. There are sexual side effects a person might also face a decrease in their sexual drive.
A person may also feel nauseous, have extra sleepiness, sudden shivering, sleeplessness, restlessness, dryness in the mouth, diarrhoea etc.
What is Wellbutrin?
Wellbutrin is commonly prescribed to patients with higher borderline disorders and severe mental health illnesses. Wellbutrin is the brand name of the drug Bupropion.
Zyban is another brand name for the same drug. Many doctors prescribe Wellbutrin because it has comparatively fewer side effects.
The route of administration for this medicine is by mouth itself. The contradiction of Wellbutrin includes people with neurological disorders and disorders that trigger seizures in patients who should be cautious while consuming it.
These neurological disorders include epilepsy and eating disorders like anorexia, bulimia etc. Other than that, a person who has alcohol withdrawal must also be cautious while consuming Wellbutrin.
Other than treating mental health disorders, Wellbutrin is also prescribed for eradicating cigarette smoking, sexual dysfunction, obesity, psoriasis, inflammation in the bowels etc.
In treating seasonal affective disorder, Wellbutrin has been effective medicine. It prevents the overall development of depression in those patients.
A patient is prescribed mostly Wellbutrin because it does not affect the patient’s weight. Instead, it is sometimes prescribed to treat obesity.
There are some common as well as severe side effects of consuming Wellbutrin. Some of the common side effects of dryness in the mouth, severe constipation, insomnia, feeling nauseous, sleepiness, throbbing in the head etc., while some adverse side effects include confusion while making decisions, changes in the vision, irregular rhythm of the heartbeat, rashes on the skin, seizures etc.
Women may experience changes in their menstrual cycles as well.
Main Differences Between Zoloft and Wellbutrin
- Zoloft is the brand name of the drug sertraline. On the other hand, Wellbutrin is the brand name of the drug bupropion.
- Zoloft does not target dopamine and norepinephrine. On the other hand, Wellbutrin does target dopamine and norepinephrine.
- Most commonly, Wellbutrin is either taken twice a day or once a day. On the other hand, most commonly, Zoloft is taken once a day.
- Zoloft is available in liquid form. On the other hand, Wellbutrin is available in tablet form.
- Zoloft has comparatively more sexual side effects. On the other hand, Wellbutrin has comparatively fewer sexual side effects.
- Another brand name of Zoloft is Lustral. On the other hand, another brand name for Wellbutrin is Zyban.
- Wellbutrin does not increase serotonin levels. On the other hand, Zoloft increases serotonin levels.
- https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&lr=&id=nqrjeYwa7foC&oi=fnd&pg=PA7&dq=zoloft&ots=nckZBwO-1y&sig=Nf5EaYHp3ySGNiBUJ5voly8vlaU
- https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/ddr.430010103
Last Updated : 13 July, 2023
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Sandeep Bhandari holds a Bachelor of Engineering in Computers from Thapar University (2006). He has 20 years of experience in the technology field. He has a keen interest in various technical fields, including database systems, computer networks, and programming. You can read more about him on his bio page.
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