Sertraline

[RobertCLL]

A friend had tinnitus for several months which stopped whilst taking sertraline. Is there any evidence that this is an effective way of controlling Tinnitus?

[TinnitusUKPat Partner]

Hi Robert

(For the uninitiated, Sertraline is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor often prescribed to help people manage anxiety, low mood, obsessive compulsive disorders and stress: bnf.nice.org.uk/drugs/sertr...

One thing that people will notice by visiting that link is that tinnitus itself is a commonly reported side effect of this medication, so this illustrates neatly that not everybody experiences the same side effects when taking a medication. I'm glad that your friend found their tinnitus to not be as much of a problem during the period that they took this medication.

If I had to voice a guess, I'd say that if the medication is doing what it is intended to do, then any decrease in stress, anxiety or the other issues which Sertraline is prescribed for might lead to a person being less aware of their tinnitus and certainly less bothered by it.

Antidepressant medications are not recommended as a treatment for tinnitus when this is the major health issue that someone is experiencing. If low mood, anxiety or stress are an issue, these medications or talking therapies may be a good way of addressing those difficulties - and tinnitus might or might not become less intrusive when our mood or thoughts about it are different.

[RobertCLL in reply to TinnitusUKPat]

Thank you for the reply.

[Positiveannie in reply to RobertCLL]

hi there I am on sertraline and it has helped with my thoughts,restless leg and tinnitus

[perlcoder]

Whenever Sertraline comes up here, I repeat my own experience of almost 7 years ago when I was prescribed the drug, not for T but at a time when my T was quite severe. I took it over a period of months, tapered off and stopped. In my case it did not make my T any better or any worse.

[Oysterseeker]

Some evidence but I don't think I would want to take something like this long term but assume it might be worth considering in a crisis journals.lww.com/psychophar...

[Velotin]

I take Sertraline for psycho disorder but unfortunately there is no positive effect on my tinnitus.

[youngbob]

I was on Sertaline for several years, which helped me cope with it, but didn’t stop it, don’t take anything now, just learned to live with it, which is a struggle at times.