Why has Lundbeck developed escitalopram?

There is a general demand from the health authorities to develop active enantiomers and not racemic mixtures, due to the potential for delivering greater clinical benefits. As a research-orientated company, Lundbeck places a great deal of importance on the development of new treatments that will help patients around the world. The substantial clinical experience with citalopram and the confidence in the drug amongst doctors is a strong base for escitalopram – a drug that is able to offer significantly better, and more, patient benefits than those offered by citalopram. The benefits include greater efficacy, earlier symptom relief, and a favourable tolerability profile.