Healthdirect Australia is not responsible for the content and advertising on the external website you are now entering.
Brand name: Sertraline (AN) TM
Active ingredients: sertraline
What it is used for
Treatment of children aged 6 years and older and adolescents with obsessive compulsive disorder. ,Treatment of major depression, obsessive compulsive disorder and panic disorder in adults. Treatment of social phobia (social anxiety disorder) and the prevention of its relapse in adults.,Treatment of premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) as defined by DSM-IV criteria.
How to take it
The way to take this medicine is: Oral. This medicine is taken by mouth.
- Store below 25 degrees Celsius
- Store in Original Container
- Shelf lifetime is 48 Months.
You should seek medical advice in relation to medicines and use only as directed by a healthcare professional.
Always read the label. If symptoms persist see your healthcare professional.
Visual appearance
White to off-white, capsule shaped, biconvex film coated tablets with '100' and 'BL' embossed on one side.
Images are the copyright of the Pharmacy Guild of Australia
Food interactions
For the active ingredient sertraline
- Avoid alcohol.
- Avoid St.John's Wort.
- Avoid taking with grapefruit juice.
- Take with food.
Do I need a prescription?
This medicine is available from a pharmacist and requires a prescription. It is
Is this medicine subsidised?
This medicine was verified as being available on the PBS (Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme) on March 1, 2019. To learn more about this subsidy, visit the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) website.
Pregnant or planning a pregnancy?
For the active ingredient sertraline
You should seek advice from your doctor or pharmacist about taking this medicine. They can help you balance the risks and the benefits of this medicine during pregnancy.
Download leaflet
For side effects, taking other medicines and more
Download consumer medicine information leaflet (pdf) from the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) website
Reporting side effects
You can help ensure medicines are safe by reporting the side effects you experience.
You can report side effects to your doctor, or directly at www.tga.gov.au/reporting-problems
Need more information?
These trusted information partners have more on this topic.
Top results
Generalised anxiety disorder (GAD) information | myVMC
Generalised anxiety disorder is a psychological condition characterised by excessive worry about daily events or regular acute anxiety to triggers.
Read more on myVMC – Virtual Medical Centre website
Panic disorder information | myVMC
Panic disorder is a psychological anxiety disorder characterised by acute anxiety to triggers, and often agoraphobia, the fear of being alone outdoors.
Read more on myVMC – Virtual Medical Centre website
How To Deal With Depression and Sadness | THIS WAY UP
Unexplained or overwhelming sadness can be a symptom of depression. Learn more about depression, its causes, and ways to get better.
Read more on This Way Up website
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) for depression - myDr.com.au
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are medicines used to treatdepression and anxiety. In fact, they are the most commonly prescribed type of antidepressant medicine in Australia.&nb
Read more on myDr website
How To Deal with OCD: Obsessive Compulsive Disorder | THIS WAY UP
Are you struggling with obsessive thoughts and compulsive behaviours? Learn more about Obsessive Compulsive Disorder.
Read more on This Way Up website
Impotence causes - myDr.com.au
Find out the physical and psychological causes of impotence, also called erectile dysfunction or ED.
Read more on myDr website
How To Deal with Panic Attacks and Agoraphobia | THIS WAY UP
Feeling overwhelmed by panic? You may be dealing with panic attacks, panic disorder, or agoraphobia. Learn more about these conditions.
Read more on This Way Up website
Top results
Sertraline versus other antidepressive agents for depression | Cochrane
Depression is the fourth leading cause of disease burden worldwide and is expected to show a rising trend over the next 20 years. Depression is associated with a marked personal, social and economic morbidity, loss of functioning and productivity, and creates significant demands on service providers in terms of workload. Although pharmacological and psychological interventions are both effective for major depression, antidepressant drugs remain the mainstay of treatment. During the last 20 years, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) have progressively become the most commonly prescribed antidepressants. Sertraline, one of the first SSRIs introduced in the market, is a potent and specific inhibitor of serotonin uptake into the presynaptic terminal, with a modest activity as inhibitor of dopamine uptake. In the present review we assessed the evidence for the efficacy, acceptability and tolerability of sertraline in comparison with all other antidepressants in the acute-phase treatment of major depression. Fifty-nine randomised controlled trials (about 10,000 participants) were included in the review. The review showed evidence of differences in efficacy, acceptability and tolerability between sertraline and other antidepressants, with meta-analyses highlighting a trend in favour of sertraline over other antidepressants, both in terms of efficacy and acceptability, in a homogeneous sample of clinical trials, using conservative statistical methods. The included studies did not report on all the outcomes that were pre-specified in the protocol of this review. Outcomes of clear relevance to patients and clinicians, in particular, patients and their carers' attitudes to treatment, their ability to return to work and resume normal social functioning, were not reported in the included studies. Nevertheless, based on currently available evidence, results from this review suggest that sertraline might be a strong candidate as the initial choice of antidepressant in people with acute major depression.
Read more on Cochrane (Australasian Centre) website
Antidepressant prevention of postnatal depression | Cochrane
Postnatal depression is a common and important disorder with negative implications for the mother, the infant and the wider family. Women who are not depressed, but at high risk of postnatal depression, such as those with a previous history of a postpartum mood disorder, may wish to consider antidepressant prevention during pregnancy or early postpartum. This review addresses the effectiveness of such treatment. Only two small trials met the criteria for inclusion. Both trials used medication immediately postpartum. The drugs were nortriptyline, a tricylic antidepressant (TCA) and sertraline, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI). Both drugs were compared only to placebo. Nortripyline was not shown to have any benefit over placebo; there was some evidence that sertraline was effective both in reducing the incidence of recurrent postpartum depression and in increasing the time to recurrence. However, both trials involved only very small numbers of women and did not use intention to treat analyses. There is, therefore, no clear evidence for the use of these antidepressants in the prevention of postnatal depression.
Read more on Cochrane (Australasian Centre) website
Antidepressants for agitation and psychosis in dementia | Cochrane
Psychosis and agitation frequently occur in older adults with dementia. Medications are often prescribed to treat these symptoms and antidepressants are increasingly used for these symptoms. We reviewed the evidence for the effectiveness and safety of antidepressants for the treatment of agitation and psychosis in older adults with dementia. We classified antidepressants based on their mechanism of action and included studies that compared antidepressants to treatment with either placebo or other medications frequently used to manage these symptoms. A total of nine studies (including 692 individuals) were identified, four comparing selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) to placebo, three comparing SSRIs to typical antipsychotics, and one study comparing SSRIs to atypical antipsychotics. One study compared the antidepressant trazodone to placebo, and two compared trazodone to haloperidol. Most of the studies included in the review were relatively small and of uncertain risk of bias due to methodological issues. The SSRIs sertraline and citalopram were associated with a modest reduction in symptoms of agitation and psychosis when compared to placebo in two studies. There were few other statistically significant differences in changes in agitation or psychosis or in most measures of medication tolerability for SSRIs or trazodone when compared to placebo or the antipsychotic haloperidol. We conclude that there is some evidence to support the use of certain antidepressants for agitation and psychosis in dementia and further studies are required to determine the effectiveness and safety of SSRIs and trazodone in managing these symptoms.
Read more on Cochrane (Australasian Centre) website
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors for treating people with autism spectrum disorders | Cochrane
Autism spectrum disorders (ASD) are characterised by problems with social interaction and communication, as well as repetitive behaviours and limited activities and interests. Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are a class of antidepressants that are sometimes given to reduce anxiety or obsessive-compulsive behaviours. We found nine trials, involving 320 people, which evaluated four SSRIs: fluoxetine, fluvoxamine, fenfluramine and citalopram. Five studies included only children and four studies included only adults. One trial enrolled 149 children, but the other trials were much smaller. We found no trials that evaluated sertraline, paroxetine or escitalopram. There is no evidence to support the use of SSRIs to treat autism in children. There is limited evidence, which is not yet sufficiently robust, to suggest effectiveness of SSRIs in adults with autism. Treatment with an SSRI may cause side effects. Decisions about the use of SSRIs for established clinical indications that may co-occur with autism, such as obsessive-compulsive disorder and depression in adults or children, and anxiety in adults, should be made on a case-by-case basis.
Read more on Cochrane (Australasian Centre) website
Fluoxetine compared with other antidepressants for depression in adults | Cochrane
Depression is a severe mental illness characterised by a persistent low mood and loss of all interest and pleasure, usually accompanied by a range of symptoms such as appetite change, sleep disturbance and poor concentration. The predominant treatment options for depression are drugs and psychological therapies, but antidepressant drugs are the most common treatment for moderate to severe depression. Fluoxetine, one of the first new generation antidepressants, is an extremely popular drug treatment for depression. However, findings from studies comparing fluoxetine with other antidepressants are controversial. In this systematic review, the efficacy and tolerability of fluoxetine was compared with other antidepressants for the acute treatment of depression.
Read more on Cochrane (Australasian Centre) website
Selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors (SSRIs) versus placebo for obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) | Cochrane
Selective serotonin re-uptake inhibitors (SSRIs) versus placebo for obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD)
Read more on Cochrane (Australasian Centre) website
Non-hormonal interventions for reducing hot flushes in women with a history of breast cancer | Cochrane
Breast cancer is one of the most frequent cancers worldwide and its treatment can produce disturbing symptoms including hot flushes, the sudden feeling of heat in the face, neck and chest. Hormonal treatments are used to control such symptoms in postmenopausal women but for women with a history of breast cancer these are not recommended as they can induce cancer growth. The aim of this review is to evaluate the efficacy of non-hormonal interventions in treating hot flushes in such women.
Read more on Cochrane (Australasian Centre) website
Medication for treating anxiety disorders in people with alcohol use problems | Cochrane
People with anxiety disorders often also abuse alcohol or have alcohol dependence. All anxiety disorders involve long-lasting and excessive fear, and can be classified according to the cause of the fear: generalized anxiety disorder (everyday situations), obsessive-compulsive disorder (repetitive thoughts and behaviours), panic disorder (panic attacks), post-traumatic stress disorder (previous traumatic events), social anxiety disorder (negative judgements by others) and specific phobia (specific objects or situations). When people with anxiety disorders abuse or are dependent on alcohol, they may be more disabled and difficult to treat than when they have either condition on its own. Psychotherapy is most often used in treating anxiety disorders in people with alcohol use problems. In psychotherapy people are encouraged to explore their feelings, moods, behaviours, thoughts and reactions to the cause of their anxiety. Psychotherapy does not always work though, so it is important to test whether medications are an effective treatment option.
Read more on Cochrane (Australasian Centre) website
Agomelatine versus other antidepressant medication for depression | Cochrane
Major depression is a serious illness that can cause significant distress both to sufferers and their families. Major depression affects people's work, relationships and self-esteem. It also affects people physically, changing their sleep patterns, concentration and appetite. The symptoms of major depression can lead people to feel hopeless and even suicidal.Antidepressant medications are an effective treatment option for major depression, but many have unpleasant side-effects.
Read more on Cochrane (Australasian Centre) website
Managing obsessive compulsive disorder | Issue 4 | Volume 38 | Australian Prescriber
Unlike obsessive compulsive personality traits or occasional repetitive habits, obsessive compulsive disorder can be highly distressing and associated with...
Read more on Australian Prescriber website
