Oral side effects of fluoxetine in patients with depressive disorder: A systematic review.

Background: Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors are currently the preferred drugs for treating depression, a condition that has become more prevalent in recent years. Fluoxetine is one of the most widely used, but, like other antidepressants, it can cause several systemic and oral adverse effects. This systematic review aimed to analyze the frequency of oral adverse effects of fluoxetine in comparison to other antidepressants.

Material and methods: For this purpose, a search was conducted in the Medline, Scopus, Cochrane, and Web of Science databases, which included randomized clinical trials and observational studies.

Results: A total of 333 articles were collected. After eliminating duplicates, articles that did not meet the inclusion criteria were discarded, and 31 studies were ultimately selected.

Conclusions: Dry mouth was the most prevalent oral adverse effect associated with fluoxetine, with a frequency rate ranging from 2.71% to 52.17%. However, it was less frequent compared to other antidepressants. It is unclear whether this sensation is accompanied by decreased salivary flow, as the studies did not perform objective determinations. Regarding dysgeusia, its frequency could not be analyzed since only two articles collected data on it. The selected articles also mention other adverse effects, such as nausea or vomiting. However, none of them evaluated the potential oral manifestations resulting from these effects.