Comparison of the cardiovascular effects of amineptine with those of amitriptyline and imipramine in anaesthetized rats.

In this study, two tricyclic antidepressant drugs and amineptine, administered to anaesthetized rats by intravenous bolus injection, were compared with regard to their in vivo cardiovascular effects. Amitriptyline and imipramine decreased mean arterial blood pressure and heart rate and caused conduction and rhythm changes in ECG. Amineptine, on the other hand, increased mean arterial blood pressure and caused a transient reduction of heart rate only at doses higher than those of amitriptyline and imipramine, while producing no noticeable ECG effects, even at doses 8 times higher than for the two tricyclic antidepressant drugs. The results of this study imply that amineptine, which structurally resembles tricyclic antidepressant drugs in having three rings and a side chain, has, nevertheless, a pattern of cardiovascular effects differing from that of amitriptyline and imipramine.