---
title: Does fluoxetine help severe PMS? | Niyora
description: Yes, fluoxetine at 20 mg/day helped severe PMS. Eight of 9 women improved on fluoxetine compared to only 1 of 6 on placebo, and all women on fluoxetine chose
url: https://niyora.com/research/papers/fluoxetine-in-the-treatment-of-premenstrual-syndrome-1990/
---

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- Does fluoxetine help severe PMS?

Randomised trial, 1990

# Does fluoxetine help severe PMS?

Yes, fluoxetine at 20 mg/day helped severe PMS. Eight of 9 women improved on fluoxetine compared to only 1 of 6 on placebo, and all women on fluoxetine chose to continue it after the study.

 Early or limited evidence

15 women with severe PMS (9 in fluoxetine group, 6 in placebo group)

## What they did

Women with severe PMS were first given placebo for one menstrual cycle to confirm their diagnosis. Those who still met PMS criteria were then randomly assigned to receive either fluoxetine (20 mg/day) or placebo for two more menstrual cycles.

## What they found

Eight of the 9 women receiving fluoxetine responded to treatment. Only 1 of the 6 women receiving placebo responded. All 9 women on fluoxetine chose to continue with the treatment after the study ended.

## What it means for you

Fluoxetine appears to effectively treat severe PMS. However, this study was very small (15 women total), so larger studies are needed to confirm these results.

15

women in study

20

fluoxetine dose (mg/day)

8 of 9

responded to fluoxetine

## About the study

Original title Fluoxetine in the treatment of premenstrual syndrome Authors Stone AB, Pearlstein TB, Brown WA Journal Psychopharmacology bulletin Year 1990 Study design Randomised trial Participants 9 What was tested Fluoxetine 20 mg/day vs placebo for two menstrual cycles Read the paper [https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2274633/](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2274633/)

## Topics

[Premenstrual syndrome (PMS)](https://niyora.com/research/topics/condition-pms/)[SSRIs and antidepressants](https://niyora.com/research/topics/treatment-ssri/)[Major depressive disorder](https://niyora.com/research/topics/comorbidity-major-depression/)

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