Effects of Sibutramine and Orlistat on Mood in Obese and Overweight Subjects: a Randomised Study

Background And Aim: Intentional weight loss results in improvement in mood. Very few data exist regarding the effects of sibutramine on the mood of obese and overweight patients in general clinical samples. Moreover, no study has evaluated the effects of orlistat treatment on mood. The purpose of our study was to assess the effects of sibutramine and orlistat on mood in obese and overweight subjects.

Methods And Results: Sixty obese and overweight women were divided into three groups. The first group (n=20) received a low-calorie diet and sibutramine 10mg; the second group (n=20) received a low-calorie diet and orlistat 120 mg three times a day, and the third group received only the low-calorie diet.

Conclusion: A psychiatric assessment was performed with the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAMD) before and after 3 months of treatment. In all the groups a statistically significant decrease in HAMD scores was observed. However, the decrease in the sibutramine group was greater compared to that observed in the two other groups (P<0.01). These results suggest that sibutramine treatment may improve mood more than diet alone or orlistat therapy in a general clinical sample of obese patients.