Evidence map›Paper›PMID 29019272›Full record

SynthesisAmerican journal of men's health2018

Amitriptyline and Sexual Function: A Systematic Review Updated for Sexual Health Practice.

Louis Wei-Hsi Chen, Melody Yun-Si Chen, Zhi-Ping Lian, Hung-Sheng Lin, Chia-Chang Chien, Hsin-Ling Yin, Yuan-Hsiang Chu, Kuo-Yen Chen

Open access · goldAbstract readSystematic Review
In one paragraph

Synthesis in American journal of men's health, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
3citing papers in PubMed
0.9field-weighted citation impact, top 25% of its field
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

3 citing papers in PubMed, 17 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Migraine in men.The journal of headache and pain · 2025
    Review
  2. Article
  3. A platform utilizingProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2021
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.

Louis Wei-Hsi Chen1 Graduate School of Human Sexuality, Shu-Te University, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan.
Melody Yun-Si Chen3 Department of Psychology, College of Social Sciences and Management, Fo Guang University, Yilan County, Taiwan.
Zhi-Ping Lian1 Graduate School of Human Sexuality, Shu-Te University, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan.
Hung-Sheng Lin2 Department of Neurology, Kaohsiung Chang Gang Memorial Hospital, and College of Medicine, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan.
Chia-Chang Chien1 Graduate School of Human Sexuality, Shu-Te University, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan.
Hsin-Ling Yin5 Department of Clinical Forensic Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University Hospital, and College of Medicine, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan.
Yuan-Hsiang Chu1 Graduate School of Human Sexuality, Shu-Te University, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan.
Kuo-Yen Chen1 Graduate School of Human Sexuality, Shu-Te University, Kaohsiung City, Taiwan.
Shu-Te University · TWKaohsiung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital · TWFo Guang University · TWKaohsiung Medical University · TW

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Amitriptyline is an old drug but is still prevalently used as the first-line treatment for a variety of common diseases. Surprisingly, knowledge of sexual risks with amitriptyline comes from only one clinical trial and several case reports from three decades ago. In the current study, a systematic review of the literature following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) related to amitriptyline and sexual dysfunction (SD) was performed. The frequency, gender-difference, types, disease-specificity and time course of SD, and the relationship between SD and nonsexual adversity were studied. A total of 14 publications, including 8 qualified randomized clinical trials, were eligible. The frequency of SD in overall, male and female patients was 5.7, 11.9 and 1.7%, respectively. SD was six-fold higher in men than women. The frequency of SD was 6.9% in depressive patients compared with 0.8% in non-depressive patients ( p = .008), and gradually decreased at 8 weeks after treatment ( p = .02). Amitriptyline impacted arousal and libido more than orgasm and ejaculation in male patients but mainly libido in female patients. SD was significantly correlated with insomnia linearly whereas somnolence and nausea dually. Therefore, amitriptyline-associated SD mainly occurs in depressive and male patients, disturbs each phase of the sexual response cycle in men but mainly libido in women, gradually decreases under long-term treatment, and can be predicted by the co-existence of insomnia, somnolence or nausea during treatment. Clinicians should caution and tailor the gender and disease vulnerability of amitriptyline in their practice.

Indexed as

AmitriptylineAntidepressive Agents, TricyclicDepressionHumansMaleSexual Dysfunctions, PsychologicalAmitriptylineAntidepressive Agents, Tricyclicamitriptylineejaculationimpotencelibidoorgasmsexual dysfunction

Identifiers

PMID29019272
PMCPMC5818113
OpenAlexW2764310628

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.