Efficacy of Acupuncture Treatment of Sexual Dysfunction Secondary to Antidepressants

Impairment of mental health is the most important risk factor for female sexual dysfunction. Women living with psychiatric illness, despite their frequent sexual difficulties, consider sexuality to be an important aspect of their quality of life. Antidepressant and antipsychotic medication, the neurobiology and symptoms of the illness, past trauma, difficulties in establishing relationships and stigmatization can all contribute to sexual dysfunction. Low sexual desire is strongly linked to depression. Lack of subjective arousal and pleasure are linked to trait anxiety: the sensations of physical sexual arousal may lead to fear rather than to pleasure. The most common type of sexual pain is 10 times more common in women with previous diagnoses of anxiety disorder. Clinicians often do not routinely inquire about their patients' sexual concerns, particularly in the context of psychotic illness but careful assessment, diagnosis and explanation of their situation is necessary and in keeping with patients' wishes. Evidence-based pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions are available but poorly researched in the context of psychotic illness.

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“…There is also some evidence of improved lubrication and desire in women with the use of acupuncture. 142…”

Section: Management Of Antidepressant Induced Sexual Dysfunctionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Women’s sexual dysfunction associated with psychiatric disorders and their treatment

Basson

Gilks

2018

Womens Health (Lond Engl)

149

106

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“…After undergoing 12 consecutive weeks of a traditional Chinese medicine acupuncture protocol, women reported significant improvement in sexual desire and vaginal lubrication compared with baseline. 27…”

Section: Managementmentioning

confidence: 99%

Antidepressant-Induced Female Sexual Dysfunction

Lorenz

Rullo

Faubion

2016

Mayo Clinic Proceedings

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Because 1 in 6 women in the United States takes antidepressants and a substantial proportion of patients report some disturbance of sexual function while taking these medications, it is a near certainty that the practicing clinician will need to know how to assess and manage antidepressant-related female sexual dysfunction. Adverse sexual effects can be complex because there are several potentially overlapping etiologies, including sexual dysfunction associated with the underlying mood disorder. As such, careful assessment of sexual function at the premedication visit followed by monitoring at subsequent visits is critical. Treatment of adverse sexual effects can be pharmacological (dose reduction, drug discontinuation or switching, augmentation, or using medications with lower adverse effect profiles), behavioral (exercising before sexual activity, scheduling sexual activity, vibratory stimulation, psychotherapy), complementary and integrative (acupuncture, nutraceuticals), or some combination of these modalities.

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“…Data with Ginkgo biloba use have been inconclusive [131][132][133][134][135][136]. Additional treatments under investigation include S-adenosylmethionine [137], saffron [138] and acupuncture [139], among others.…”

Section: Other Strategiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sexual dysfunction associated with major depressive disorder and antidepressant treatment

Clayton

Haddad

Iluonakhamhe

et al. 2014

Expert Opinion on Drug Safety

108

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Depression and SD have a bidirectional association. When screening for depression, baseline sexual functioning should be assessed with validated rating scales. If sexual side effects develop with antidepressant treatment, management options include waiting for spontaneous remission, decreasing the medication dose, switching to an alternative drug or adding an augmentation agent or antidote. Research suggests that bupropion and newer antidepressants exhibit a more favorable SD profile compared with other antidepressants, especially selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors and serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors. Bupropion, mirtazapine and buspirone have been studied as augmentation agents/antidotes or substitution agents in management of AASD. Future studies validating genetic factors could enable personal genotyping to guide individualized treatment and also facilitate the development of enhanced therapeutic guidelines to avoid or manage AASD.

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Efficacy of Acupuncture Treatment of Sexual Dysfunction Secondary to Antidepressants

Abstract: This study suggests a potential role for acupuncture in the treatment of the sexual side-effects of SSRIs and SNRIs as well for a potential benefit of integrating medical and complementary and alternative practitioners.

Cited by 29 publications

References 30 publications

Women’s sexual dysfunction associated with psychiatric disorders and their treatment

Women’s sexual dysfunction associated with psychiatric disorders and their treatment

Antidepressant-Induced Female Sexual Dysfunction

Sexual dysfunction associated with major depressive disorder and antidepressant treatment

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