ReviewPain research & management2016
Treating Chronic Pain with SSRIs: What Do We Know?
Review in Pain research & management, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 54 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
54 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 111 citations in OpenAlex.
- Beyond Depression: The Role of Antidepressants in Managing Chronic Temporomandibular Disorders. A Systematic Review.Journal of oral rehabilitation · 2025Pooled it
- The Effect of Neuromodulatory Drugs on the Intensity of Chronic Pelvic Pain in Women: A Systematic Review.Revista brasileira de ginecologia e obstetricia : revista da Federacao Brasileira das Sociedades de Ginecologia e Obstetricia · 2022Pooled it
- A systematic review of treatment for patients with burning mouth syndrome.Cephalalgia : an international journal of headache · 2022Pooled it
- Effects of Central Nervous System Drugs on Recovery After Stroke: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials.Clinical drug investigation · 2017Pooled it
- Comparison between Two Low Doses of Amitriptyline in the Management of Chronic Neck Pain: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Comparative Study.Pain research & management · 2021Trial
- Trial
- Psychotropic Drugs: A Promising Non-Antibiotic Agent to Combat Multi-Drug-Resistant Microorganisms.Drug development research · 2026Review
- Dissociation Between Functional Performance and Structural Joint Damage Following Sertraline Treatment in Collagen-Induced Arthritis.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Article
- Preparation and evaluation of citalopram novasomal vesicles as a transdermal analgesic drug delivery.Drug delivery and translational research · 2026Article
- Large Library Docking for Polypharmacology.Journal of medicinal chemistry · 2026Article
- Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP): Molecular Mechanisms, Actions and Clinical Applications in Human Body.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Review
- Article
- Psychotropic Medications for Non-Psychiatric Conditions: A Narrative Review.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Temporal Summation of Pain Unpleasantness Is Increased in Borderline Personality Disorder.European journal of pain (London, England) · 2025Article
- Obsessive-compulsive symptoms and traits in patients with burning mouth syndrome: a cross-sectional multicentric analysis.Clinical oral investigations · 2025Article
- Use of oral neuromodulators in chronic pelvic painNumber 8 - 2025.Revista brasileira de ginecologia e obstetricia : revista da Federacao Brasileira das Sociedades de Ginecologia e Obstetricia · 2025Article
- Postoperative multimodal pain management: a narrative review of current practices, clinical and educational gaps, and future directions.Frontiers in anesthesiology · 2025Article
- The additive effect between citalopram and muscimol upon induction of antinociceptive effect in male mice.IBRO neuroscience reports · 2024Article
- Anxiety-Like Behaviors in Mice Unmasked: Revealing Sex Differences in Anxiety Using a Novel Light-Heat Conflict Test.Journal of neuroscience research · 2024Article
- Investigating factors associated with medicinal cannabis authorization dosage among military Veterans in Canada.Journal of military, veteran and family health · 2023Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Serotonin is a monoamine neurotransmitter that plays a major role in both nociception and mood regulation. Alterations in the 5-hydroxytryptophan (5HT) system have been reported in chronic pain patients. In recent years, Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) have been suggested as an alternative treatment for chronic pain due to the fact that they are better tolerated presenting less secondary effects than other antidepressants such as tricyclic antidepressants. Although several clinical trials have been published, the effectiveness of SSRI as treatment for pain conditions is inconclusive. This review aims to summarise what is known, regarding the effectiveness of SSRI as a treatment for chronic pain conditions in adults. A total of 36 studies involving a total of 1898 participants were included in this review. Of the 36 trials included in the review, 2 used zimelidine as treatment, 3 used escitalopram, 4 used fluvoxamine, 4 used sertraline, 6 used citalopram, 8 used paroxetine, 9 used fluoxetine, and one used both citalopram and paroxetine. Because the trials included in this review are quite heterogeneous, only qualitative analyses were performed. SSRI seems to have an effect on most of chronic pain conditions; however, further clinical trials with good methodology leading to low risk of bias are needed in order to conclude once and for all the effect of this drug class as treatment for chronic pain conditions.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.