This is my first time on this board and my first post...will open another thread to intro myself...

Here is the story behind Pristiq....a personal prespective only:

I have a psychiatirst who oversees my mental health meds. I was in his office a short time ago, and since I go into the Part D Gap/Donut Hole by the 1st of May each year, he knows I need samples to survive the balance of the year.

He said he couldn't give me samples of Effexor anymore, but he did have a new drugs to replace Effexor and it was Pristiq. Okay, I am not happy with this, but do I have a choice.

Pristiq has worked well for me...50mg. It is a good product, I don't discount this, and it has worked well for me (Major Depressive Disorder since childhood). The 50 mg dose of Pristiq is said to be as effective as 150/300 mg of Effexor and I do agree from my personal experience.

Why no samples in the doc's closet...Well, seems Wyeth (the pharma) has told the drug reps to NOT leave anymore Effexor samples in ANY doc's sample closets (this includes my Internist too). Seems Weyth would like to sell Pristiq instead...why? Because the patent on Effexor will end soon and it will move into generic form soon after...Weyth will lose a cash-cow.

There was an aticle here at PsychCentralNews, "Low-Dose Pristiq Effective for Dpression" I don't have enough posts (must have 10 posts) to include the link, so you will have to seek it out if you care to read it.

There was also an article in the New York Times, March 1, 2008, "FDA Approves Wyeth Antidepressant," that includes this excerpt: "With the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of Pristiq, Wyeth said the company planned a big sales effort to introduce the product to psychiatrists and primary care doctors. Wyeth needs a product that will replace some of the revenue expected to be lost to generic competitors of Effexor XR, whose patent protection expires in 2010. Sales of Effexor XR last year were $3.8 billion."