title: Sertraline-induced periorbital purpura: a case report.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The incidence of mild to severe levels of spontaneous bleeding due to the usage of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) is relatively low. Although the exact mechanism is not known, it is thought that inhibition of the serotonin transporter together with a decrease in platelet serotonin could be responsible for the bleeding. Therefore, the use of SSRIs in conjunction with anti-aggregants may predispose to or exacerbate the risk of bleeding. In this case report, we describe a 44-year-old female patient with a diagnosis of anxiety disorder who spontaneously developed periorbital purpura during treatment with sertraline.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Abnormal bleeding after treatment with an SSRI should be kept in mind, and alternative non-SSRI drugs of choice in such cases would be more appropriate. More extensive and comprehensive studies focusing on hemostasis and bleeding disorders are needed for SSRIs such as sertraline.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Mevlana University Faculty of Medicine, Konya, Turkey drkayhan@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Fatih
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Kayhan
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Istanbul Bilim University, Faculty of Medicine, Istanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Zahide Eriş
authors.initials: ZE
authors.lastname: Eken
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Necmettin Erbakan University Faculty of Medicine, Konya, Turkey.
authors.forename: Faruk
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Uguz
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000188:drug therapy; D005260:Female; D006470:Hemorrhage / Q000139:chemically induced*; D006801:Humans; D009916:Orbital Diseases / Q000139:chemically induced*; D011693:Purpura / Q000139:chemically induced*; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors / Q000009:adverse effects*; D020280:Sertraline / Q000009:adverse effects*
chemical_list: D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors; D020280:Sertraline
keywords: bleeding; purpura; sertraline; side effect