Treatment effect of sibutramine compared to fluoxetine on leptin levels in polycystic ovary disease

Weight reduction on its own is observed to cause improvement in some of the abnormalities seen in patients with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). With respect to this observation, we studied the possible effects of different serotonin reuptake inhibitors (fluoxetine and sibutramine) on serum leptin levels that might play a role in the obesity component seen in patients with PCOS. In a random design, sixteen patients were assigned to fluoxetine and sibutramine for a period of 10 days. In both treatment groups, no significant differences were observed between pre-treatment and post-treatment values in insulin levels (p > 0.05). There was no significant difference between pre-treatment and post-treatment serum leptin levels in the fluoxetine treatment group (p > 0.05). However, a significant reduction was observed in the serum leptin levels at the end of treatment in the sibutramine group (p < 0.05). The observed difference in the serum leptin response to the treatment effect of sibutramine compared...