Non-randomised trial, 2024
Does luteal phase sertraline treatment affect stress hormones and inflammation in PMDD?
Sertraline during the luteal phase changed stress hormone levels in complex ways depending on other hormonal factors, but results were mixed and this exploratory study had no placebo control group.
What they did
After two months of daily symptom tracking, women with PMDD and controls gave blood samples during follicular and luteal phases while completing a mildly stressful task. In a second luteal phase, 28 women with PMDD received sertraline 50 mg daily from ovulation to menses. Researchers measured stress hormones and inflammation markers.
What they found
Women with PMDD receiving sertraline showed that higher levels of a neurosteroid called allopregnanolone (ALLO) predicted lower cortisol peaks in the treated luteal phase (p=0.042). Cortisol peaks were higher in the treated versus untreated luteal phase (p=0.038). Complete results for inflammation markers were not presented in this abstract.
What it means for you
Sertraline may affect how the body handles stress during the luteal phase in PMDD, though how it works is complex. This was an exploratory study with no control group for the treatment itself, so findings need replication in larger randomized trials. The incomplete results also limit what we can conclude.
77
Total participants
50 mg
Daily sertraline dose
28
PMDD women who completed treatment
About the study
- Original title
- Luteal phase sertraline treatment of premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD): Effects on markers of hypothalamic pituitary adrenal (HPA) axis activation and inflammation
- Authors
- Barone JC, Ho A, Osborne LM et al.
- Journal
- Psychoneuroendocrinology
- Year
- 2024
- Study design
- Non-randomised trial
- Participants
- 77
- What was tested
- Luteal phase sertraline 50 mg daily from ovulation to menses
- Open access
- Yes
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1016/j.psyneuen.2024.107145
Topics
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