MENTAL HEALTH UPDATE

This site presents new information about the many facets of mental health that is continually emerging from around the world. The Mental Health Update highlights some of that information, where it comes from, and what its relevance is to therapy for today's world.  Articles are presented as information only and should not be considered as a  recommendation of any particular research, treatment or medication. 

March 14, 2010

BUPROPRION SHOWS BENEFITS FOR WOMEN WITH HYPOACTIVE SEXUAL DESIRE DISORDER

The antidepressant buproprion (Wellbutrin) may hold promise for improving symptoms in younger women with hypoactive sexual desire disorder (HSDD), a small study suggests.

In a new study, Iranian researchers found that buproprion sustained-release (Wellbutrin SR) generally boosted sex drive among 116 women with HSDD who took the drug for 12 weeks.

Compared with 116 women given a placebo, their scores on the Brief Index of Sexual Functioning for Women (BISF-W) were twice as high, according to findings published in BJU International.

As it stands, there is no treatment for HSDD widely accepted by women, according to the researchers on the new study, led by Dr. Mohammad Reza Safarinejad of Shahid Beheshti University in Tehran.

In Europe, a testosterone patch (Intrinsa) is approved for treating HSDD in postmenopausal women. It is not approved in the U.S.

Dr. Safarinejad told Reuters Health by email that studies have shown buproprion SR to improve sexual function in women who are having sexual side effects from selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs).

For the current study, Dr. Safarinejad and colleagues randomly assigned 232 women between the ages of 20 and 40 to take either buproprion SR or a placebo every day for 12 weeks. All of the women had been diagnosed with HSDD and were free of depression or other major health problems.

The study received no drug industry funding, Dr. Safarinejad said.

At the outset, both groups of women had similar scores on the Brief Index of Sexual (BISF-W) - just under 16, on average. The average score for healthy women with a regular partner is 33.6, Dr. Safarinejad said.

After 12 weeks, that score improved to 33.9 among women in the antidepressant group, versus 16.9 in the placebo group.

The most common side effects linked to buproprion included headache (affecting 9 percent of the group), insomnia and dry mouth (each affecting 7 percent), and nausea and muscle aches (each affecting 6 percent).

While the findings suggest that buproprion improves low sex drive, this is the first study to test the antidepressant in premenopausal women with HSDD.

"Further studies are needed" to help researchers understand the role of buproprion in HSDD, Dr. Safarinejad noted.

Exactly why buproprion might improve sexual function is unclear. One theory attributes the effects to enhanced dopamine and norepinephrine activity. 

BJU Int 2010.

Amy Norton, Reuters Health Information © 2010

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