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A 52-year-old male asked:

Is silenor a new sleep medication and is it similar to ambien (zolpidem)?

1 doctor answer1 doctor weighed in
Dr. Sarah Walton
Pharmacology 8 years experience
For sleep, but....: Silenor is a sleep medication but it works very differently from ambien. Silenor's chemical name is doxepin, this has been used as an antidepressant for many years (at much higher doses 100-300mg/day vs 3-6mg for silenor). It works similar to OTC sleep aids like Benadryl (diphenhydramine) and doxylamine by blocking histamine. Zolpidem works in a more complex way on hormones that regulate sleep.
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Last updated Jul 21, 2017

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