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Quetiapine, sold under the trade name Seroquel among others, is an atypical antipsychotic used for the treatment of schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depressive disorder. Despite being widely used as a sleep aid due its sedating effect, the benefits of such use do not appear to generally outweigh the side effects. It is taken by mouth.
Common side effects include sleepiness, constipation, weight gain, and dry mouth. Other side effects include low blood pressure with standing, seizures, a prolonged erection, high blood sugar, tardive dyskinesia, and neuroleptic malignant syndrome. In older people with dementia, its use increases the risk of death. Use in the third trimester of pregnancy may result in a movement disorder in the baby for some time after birth. Quetiapine is believed to work by blocking a number of receptors including serotonin and dopamine.
Quetiapine was developed in 1985 and approved for medical use in the United States in 1997. It is available as a generic medication. In the United States, the wholesale cost is about US$12 per month as of 2017.[11] In the United Kingdom, a month’s supply costs the NHS about £60 as of 2017. In 2016, it was the 86th most prescribed medication in the United States, with more than 8 million prescriptions.