What is Citalopram? Antidepressant linked to death of Thomas Kingston

On Tuesday, a coroner ruled that Thomas Kingston, son-in-law of Prince and Princess Michael of Kent, died from a gunshot wound after suffering an adverse effect from medication prescribed by his doctor.

Thomas Kingston, husband of Lady Gabriella Kingston, died from head trauma and a firearm was found near his body on February 25 at his parents’ home in the Cotswolds.

Recording a narrative conclusion, Katy Skerrett, senior coroner for Gloucestershire, said: “Mr Kingston took his own life using a shotgun, which caused a serious traumatic head injury.

“The testimonies of his wife, his family and his business partner all confirm his lack of suicidal intent. He was suffering from side effects from medications he had recently been prescribed.

At the time of his death, Mr. Kingston was taking Citalopram, a common antidepressant, and, just before, he had been prescribed Sertraline.

During her inquest, Lady Gabriella, 43, said people needed to be warned about the effects of drugs used to treat mental health problems or more people could die.

The conclusions of the investigation come after The Independent The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has launched a review of the 30 most common antidepressants following concerns raised by families about the side effects of the drugs, the medicines regulator has revealed.

This review will include citalopram.

What are Citalopram and Sertraline?

Citalopram, also known by its trade name as Cipramil, is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressant. The medication is used to treat low mood depression and sometimes also for panic attacks.

Sertraline is another type of SSRI, known by its trade name Lustral, and is also used to treat depression and sometimes panic attacks, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder.

SSRIs work primarily by blocking the reuptake of serotonin into the nerve cell that released it. This means that serotonin acts on your brain and body for longer.

SSRIs are the most commonly prescribed type of antidepressant in the UK. According to an analysis of prescriptions in the UK between 2015 and 2019, citalopram was the most commonly prescribed antidepressant, accounting for 71 million doses over 5 years.

During the same period, 64 million doses of sertraline were prescribed.

According to the NHS, it usually takes four to six weeks for the medicine to take effect.

What are the side effects of SSRIs?

Common or very common side effects of SSRIs may include fatigue, anxiety, nervousness, dry mouth, dizziness, trouble concentrating, fever, memory loss, and trouble sleeping.

Uncommon side effects may also include alopecia, hallucinations, mania, movement disorders, photosensitivity reactions, and suicidal behavior.

In May The Independent revealed that the MHRA will review the effectiveness of current warnings on 30 different antidepressants, including Prozac, called Fluoxetine, as well as lithium and citalopram.

The review comes as the most recent NHS data from March 2023 to December 2023 shows 331,000 patients aged 10 to 19 were prescribed an antidepressant during this period – compared to 240,000 during the same period in 2015-2016.