Relation between Fluoxetine and Menstrual Cycle Disorders

Objective: To investigate the effect of fluoxetine as an SSRI on menstrual disorders.Materials and methods: In this cross-sectional study 200 women referring to the Islamic Azad University affiliated hospitals during March 2011- March 2010 were divided into 4 groups. All included patients in this study had the chief complaint of mood disorders in peri- menstrual period. All patients received daily vitamin B6 tablets as primitive treatment. In groups A, B and C patients also received daily doses of 10 mg, 20 mg and 40 mg of fluoxetine respectively for 6 months and in group D as the control group fluoxetine was not given. Data were analyzed by spss18 statistical software. Significant difference was set at p<0.05.Results: In the groups receiving fluoxetine (groups A - C) 34 patients and in control group 5 patients showed irregular menstruation started during fluoxetine administration and following 3 months. Significant difference with p<0.05 was found regarding the incidence of menstrual irregularity between groups with and without fluoxetine prescription.Conclusion: Fluoxetine consumption leads to increased incidence of menstrual irregularity compared to the control group. The incidence increases with increasing dosage of the drug.