Menopausal Women Taking Antidepressants Warned of Bone Fractures: Study

A new research claims that a specific class of anti-depressants prescribed to counter symptoms of menopause, can weaken bones in women.

According to NZ Herald, Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRI) is prescribed in lieu of Hormone Replacement Therapy for countering depression, anxiety and hot flushes that menopause brings. The new study from researchers at Harvard University, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and Northeastern University concluded that women who take SSRI have 76 percent higher risk of bone fractures compared to other women not taking such drugs.

"SSRIs appear to increase fracture risk among middle-aged women without psychiatric disorders, an effect sustained over time, suggesting that shorter duration of treatment may decrease fracture risk. Future efforts should examine whether this association pertains at lower doses," researchers wrote in the journal Injury Prevention.

For the study, researchers used data on women aged between 40 and 64 years from a claims database and compared it with a control group of women who used medication for stomach ulcers.

NHS wrote that the actual risk is statistically small as the baseline risk of using such drugs in itself is small. It was also noted that the study may not apply if women take SSRIs for mental health reasons. The UK's health agency also noted that the risk was statistically significant only after the second year of use.