Treatment-emergent sexual dysfunction related to antidepressants: a meta-analysis.
Where does the antidepressant I'm on sit on the sexual side-effect ranking, and is there a drug with a lower rate that would still treat my condition?
Reasonable evidence with real limitations. how we score evidence
Caveat on this rating: The authors state that including open-label studies and pooling across different sexual-function scales "could reduce the significance of our findings," so the 25.8-80.3% band is wide partly because the source studies were not uniform. No funding statement or conflict-of-interest disclosure was accessible for this paper.
When sexual function is actually asked about with a questionnaire rather than waited for as a spontaneous complaint, treatment-emergent sexual dysfunction ranged from 25.8% to 80.3% of patients across antidepressants, all significantly above placebo. In descending order of impact the drugs were sertraline, venlafaxine, citalopram, paroxetine, fluoxetine, imipramine, phenelzine, duloxetine, escitalopram, and fluvoxamine. Agomelatine, amineptine, bupropion, moclobemide, mirtazapine, and nefazodone showed no significant difference from placebo.
Worth asking
Where does the antidepressant I'm on sit on the sexual side-effect ranking, and is there a drug with a lower rate that would still treat my condition?
What to watch for
Evidence quality tells you whether to trust the finding — not whether the treatment is safe. These are the risks this research reports.
- Persistent sexual dysfunction (PSSD)
- Sexual side effects
Source
Treatment-emergent sexual dysfunction related to antidepressants: a meta-analysis. — Serretti A, Chiesa A. (2009)
Reputable peer-reviewed journal
Read the source: https://doi.org/10.1097/JCP.0b013e3181a5233f
DOI: 10.1097/JCP.0b013e3181a5233f
How this was scored
- Study design
- Meta-analysis of randomised trials
- Funding
- Funding not disclosed
- Published in
- Reputable peer-reviewed journal
- Sample size
- not recorded
- Preregistered
- No
- Conflicts disclosed
- No
- Independent of proponent
- not recorded
- Retracted
- No
Read the full scoring rubric, including what it can't tell you.
Published August 19, 2026.
Where we put this study in context
Questions
How strong is the evidence behind this?
Resolv rates this source "moderate evidence". Reasonable evidence with real limitations. It scores 63 out of 100 on our published rubric. One caveat travels with that badge: The authors state that including open-label studies and pooling across different sexual-function scales "could reduce the significance of our findings," so the 25.8-80.3% band is wide partly because the source studies were not uniform. No funding statement or conflict-of-interest disclosure was accessible for this paper. The score is calculated from recorded facts about the source — study design, funding, publication venue, sample size, preregistration — not typed in by an editor.
What is the source for this?
Treatment-emergent sexual dysfunction related to antidepressants: a meta-analysis. — Serretti A, Chiesa A. (2009). Published in: Reputable peer-reviewed journal. DOI: 10.1097/JCP.0b013e3181a5233f. The full source is linked on this page so you can read it yourself.
Who paid for this research, and does that matter?
Study design: Meta-analysis of randomised trials. Funding: Funding not disclosed. Independence from the proponent is not recorded. Industry sponsorship is one of the most reliably measured biases in medicine, which is why funding carries real weight in the score rather than sitting in a footnote.
Is this medical advice?
This is information to bring to your prescriber, not medical advice and not a reason to change anything on your own. Nothing here is an instruction to stop or reduce a medication. If you are in crisis, call or text 988.
This is information to bring to your prescriber, not medical advice and not a reason to change anything on your own. Nothing here is an instruction to stop or reduce a medication. If you are in crisis, call or text 988.