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Nortriptyline Dosing

A healthcare provider will consider several factors before prescribing nortriptyline. The nortriptyline dosing amounts are generally determined based on your age, existing medical conditions you may have, and other medications you may also be taking. The recommended starting nortriptyline dose for treating depression is 25 mg three or four times a day. Your healthcare provider should start you at a lower dose and may increase your nortriptyline dose slowly.

 

An Overview of Nortriptyline Dosing

The dose of nortriptyline hydrochloride (Pamelor®) your healthcare provider prescribes will vary depending on a number of factors, including:
 
  • Your age
  • Other medical conditions you may have
  • Other medications you may currently be taking.
     
As is always the case, do not adjust your dose unless your healthcare provider specifically instructs you to do so.
 

Nortriptyline Dosing for Depression

For
 depression treatment, the recommended nortriptyline dose is nortriptyline 25 mg three or four times per day. You healthcare provider should start you at a lower dose and slowly increase your dose if you tolerate nortriptyline well. Also, your healthcare provider may decide to have you take your nortriptyline dose once a day (instead of splitting it into three or four smaller doses). If you take more than 100 mg per day, your healthcare provider should monitor the level of nortriptyline in your blood.
 
Although nortriptyline is not approved for use in teens, the manufacturer gives recommendations for nortriptyline dosing in teens. For teenage depression or depression in the elderly, lower doses are recommended. The recommended dose for teens or elderly people is nortriptyline 30 mg to 50 mg total per day (taken all at once or split into smaller doses).
 
(Nortriptyline Dosing Continued: Page 2)
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Written by/reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD; Arthur Schoenstadt, MD
Last reviewed by: Kristi Monson, PharmD;