Taken as a whole, however, the reported symptoms have been a combination of signs of acute toxicity—such as seizures, hypertonus, jaundice, and hypoglycemia—and more typical discontinuation symptoms, including respiratory distress and hyperventilation. The notion that these reactions are related to serotonin syndrome seems unsupported, given that they occur more often with short half-life paroxetine than with long half-life drugs.
Richard C. Shelton, MD
James G. Blakemore Research Professor
Professor of pharmacology
Department of psychiatry
Vanderbilt University
Nashville, TN