Randomised trial, 2000
Does sertraline help PMDD in women taking birth control pills?
Yes, sertraline worked better than placebo in this very small pilot study of 8 women.
What they did
Eight women aged 18-45 with PMDD kept daily diaries for 2 menstrual cycles. They then received either sertraline (50-150 mg/day) or placebo for 3 cycles, then switched to the other treatment for 3 more cycles.
What they found
Sertraline at an average dose of 125.0 ± 38.0 mg/day was superior to placebo on premenstrual symptom scores and physician-rated improvement (P <0.01). Adverse events were similar. In 3 of 8 patients, sertraline was still detectable after placebo treatment, suggesting slower clearance with oral contraceptives.
What it means for you
Sertraline may help PMDD in women on birth control pills. This is the first study to test this combination, but it is very small and preliminary, limiting how much we can trust the results.
8
Women in study
125.0 ± 38.0
Average sertraline dose (mg/day)
3 of 8
Women with slow drug clearance
About the study
- Original title
- Sertraline in contraceptive users with premenstrual dysphoric disorder
- Authors
- Candace Brown
- Journal
- Obstetrics and Gynecology
- Year
- 2000
- Study design
- Randomised trial
- Participants
- 8
- What was tested
- Sertraline (50-150 mg/day) vs placebo
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1016/s0029-7844(00)00636-0
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