Women with severe symptoms of premenstrual syndrome (PMS) who have stopped taking the antidepressant drug, Sertraline, have had frequent relapses.
174 women participated in a study, with half of them taking Sertraline for four months and the other half taking a placebo.
“Patients with severe symptoms at baseline were more likely to experience relapse compared with patients in the lower symptom severity group and were more likely to experience relapse with short-term treatment,” explained Dr. Freeman.
In the first month, researchers at the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania observed improved symptoms of PMS in 125 women. When they stopped taking the antidepressant, Dr. Ellen W. Freeman’s team observed a relapse in 60% of the cases.