The MAO inhibitor phenelzine is virtually out of use in the Netherlands. In this article the more recent studies concerning phenelzine in atypical depression, major depression and panic disorder, are reviewed. The best established indication for treatment with phenelzine is atypical depression. It is unclear whether phenelzine is more effective than TCA in depression with panic attacks and in elderly depressed patients. Remarkably few comparative studies have been conducted in patients with panic disorder. The side effects produced by phenelzine are less than those of tranylcypromine, but moclobemide is definitely more benign than phenelzine.