Low-certainty evidence suggests that off-label fluoxetine may decrease weight compared with placebo .
However , low-certainty evidence suggests an increase in the risk for dizziness , drowsiness , fatigue , insomnia and nausea following fluoxetine treatment
BACKGROUND Fluoxetine is a serotonin reuptake inhibitor indicated for major depression .
It is also thought to affect weight control : this seems to happen through appetite changes result ing in decreased food intake and normalisation of unusual eating behaviours .
However , the benefit-risk ratio of this off-label medication is unclear .
OBJECTIVES To assess the effects of fluoxetine for overweight or obese adults .
The effects of fluoxetine combined with nicotine inhalers in smoking cessation--a randomized trial.
AIMS Nicotine replacement therapy ( NRT ) is an established aid in stopping smoking , while the role of antidepressants remains uncertain . Antidepressants added to NRT might improve abstinence rates . Our aim was to determine the efficacy of nicotine inhaler and fluoxetine vs. nicotine inhaler and placebo in attempts to quit smoking . DESIGN A r and omized , double-blind , placebo-controlled trial . SETTING A smoker 's cessation clinic . PARTICIPANTS One hundred volunteers smoking 10 cigarettes/day or more . INTERVENTIONS Subjects were instructed to start taking a daily dose of 10 mg of fluoxetine or placebo 16 days before stopping smoking , then 20 mg 10 days before quitting , continuing for up to at least 3 months . Subjects were instructed to use 6 - 12 units per day of nicotine inhalers after stopping smoking for up to 6 months . MEASUREMENTS Continuous abstinence rates recorded at various time points up to 12 months from the quit date . FINDINGS The sustained abstinence rate for the inhaler-fluoxetine group was 54 % , 40 % , 29 % and 21 % after 1.5 , 3 , 6 and 12 months , respectively , compared to 48 % , 40 % , 32 % and 23 % for the inhaler-placebo group . The differences were not significant at any time point . Abstinence up to 3 months was more likely in older smokers , those with a lower Beck Depression Inventory Score ( BDI ) , lower Fagerström Test of Nicotine Dependence ( FTND ) score and no history of alcoholism . Fluoxetine appeared to increase abstinence rates among high BDI smokers compared to high BDI smokers assigned placebo .  Serum levels of nicotine during treatment in the inhaler-fluoxetine group were lower than in the inhaler-placebo group so that fluoxetine may have reduced inhaler use through a common site of action . CONCLUSIONS We found no evidence that fluoxetine treatment when used as an adjunct to NRT in unselected smokers is effective , but there may be an advantage to using it in depressed smokers
Low-certainty evidence suggests that off-label fluoxetine may decrease weight compared with placebo .
However , low-certainty evidence suggests an increase in the risk for dizziness , drowsiness , fatigue , insomnia and nausea following fluoxetine treatment
BACKGROUND Fluoxetine is a serotonin reuptake inhibitor indicated for major depression .
It is also thought to affect weight control : this seems to happen through appetite changes result ing in decreased food intake and normalisation of unusual eating behaviours .
However , the benefit-risk ratio of this off-label medication is unclear .
OBJECTIVES To assess the effects of fluoxetine for overweight or obese adults .