PREVALENCE OF GASTROINTESTINAL SIDE EFFECTS WITH THE USE OF SERTRALINE

Soumen Karmakar; Sushmita Mukherji; Sibaji Dasgupta

Volume : IX, Issue : VI, June - 2020

PREVALENCE OF GASTROINTESTINAL SIDE EFFECTS WITH THE USE OF SERTRALINE

Soumen Karmakar, Sushmita Mukherji, Sibaji Dasgupta

Abstract :

Objective: Sertraline is one of the most commonly used Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor (SSRI) in a variety of psychiatric disorders. One of its most common side-effects is gastrointestinal (GI). This study was undertaken to demonstrate the prevalence of this cumbersome side-effect with its use. Method: A total of 116 participants were chosen from the psychiatry OPD of a tertiary care hospital in Eastern India who were on Sertraline monotherapy but did not have any gastrointestinal symptoms on initial presentation, and were followed up after one month of using Sertraline. Results: Out of the total, 73 cases (62.9%) had reported one or more GI symptoms after one month, with a slight male preponderance. Most common reported GI symptom was dyspepsia (54.3%), followed by nausea (42.2%), anorexia and constipation. Conclusion: This study clearly shows the high prevalence of GI side effects associated with the use of Sertraline.