In any given year, up to 14 million adults in the U.S. are affected by major depressive disorder (MDD), commonly referred to as depression. Ten percent of women and 4 percent of men aged 18 and older now take antidepressants for depression. Surprisingly, however, many patients may not be aware that the medicine they are taking may cause sexual problems. This may cause some confusion because sexual problems can also be a symptom of depression.
In a recent survey, conducted by International Communications Research on behalf of GlaxoSmith Kline, of 1,003 men and women prescribed antidepressant medication to treat depression, sexual problems were cited by about half (48 percent) of respondents as the most commonly experienced side effect of antidepressants.
“Many people don’t realize that their sexual problems can be caused by major depressive disorder itself or by some of the treatments,” said Adam Keller Ashton, M.D., clinical professor of psychiatry with the State University of New York at Buffalo. According to the survey, a lack of sex drive was the most notable sexual problem experienced (77 percent), followed by the inability to have an orgasm (56 percent).
Both depression and sexual problems can be difficult topics to discuss with a doctor. In one study, only 20 percent of patients proactively reported antidepressant-related sexual problems to their health care provider. In contrast, 59 percent of patients reported sexual problems when directly asked about it.
Doctors may also not remember to tell patients about this potential side effect. In one study, only 16 percent of patients said their doctor told them about sexual problems related to antidepressant treatment, yet 69 percent of doctors said they normally mention this side effect.
“Sexual dysfunction associated with antidepressants does occur and can be a bothersome side effect for patients taking an antidepressant,” said Ashton. “No one antidepressant is right for everyone, yet there are plenty of options to meet patients’ needs, which is why it’s critical for doctors to discuss and patients to ask about side effects of any medication prescribed.”
Some antidepressants that affect the neurotransmitter serotonin seem to have higher incidence of sexual problems compared to those that do not. In fact, several studies have shown that the incidence of sexual problems reported with the use of serotonergic antidepressants can range from 34 to 67 percent.
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