[Nov3]

Actually after Phen-fen was banned prosac was used as substitute for the fenfluramine. Both I bbelieve are SSRIs I am not sure if I used the correct spelling.

[Al B.]

Actually after Phen-fen was banned prosac was used as substitute for the fenfluramine.

Serotonin boosters are by nature anorexic. Fenfluramine (banned) and Prozac both act this way. Fenfluramine was banned because it was shown to be neurotoxic and because it was shown by the Mayo clinic in a study to cause heart valve problems.

[technochick99]

It does not seem that phen-fen is classified as an SSRI at http://www.fda.gov/cder/news/phen/fenphenqa2.htm .

14. Can selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressants such as Prozac, Zoloft, Luvox and Paxil be substituted for fenfluramine in the phen/fen combination?

FDA has not reviewed the safety or efficacy of such combinations and has not approved their use. These drugs are active in serotonin metabolism but have somewhat different activity than fenfluramine and dexfenfluramine. No currently available weight-loss drugs have been studied adequately in combinations to permit a recommendation by FDA for combined use.

Now, I'm not too sure about the following, but:
Fenfluramine is a potent releaser of serotonin from serotonergic neurons impinging on the cerebral appetite center. This was from http://www.usaweightloss.com/anchors%20patent/United%20States%20Patent%205,795,895.htm

This is clearly different from a reuptake inhibitor, but the research I found was that Paxil (not Prozac) had the effect when taken in doses greater than the depression treatment level.