Catalano G, Kanfer S N, Catalano M C, Alberts V A
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine, University of South Florida College of Medicine, Tampa, USA.
Gen Hosp Psychiatry. 1996 Jul;18(4):278-83. doi: 10.1016/0163-8343(96)00038-2.
A 75-year-old female with major depression was admitted to the hospital on two separate occasions for medical problems. During both her hospitalizations she was evaluated by a psychiatrist and diagnosed with a major depressive episode. On both admissions the antidepressant chosen to treat her depression was sertraline. Each time the patient was treated with sertraline she developed significant hyponatremia within 7 days of the initiation of therapy. The case is presented and discussed, with special emphasis on the prior reports of hyponatremia associated with sertraline use, and the treatment alternatives.
