Sertraline-induced Hemichorea

• Main Authors: Emilia M. Gatto1, Victoria Aldinio, Virginia Parisi, Gabriel Persi, Gustavo Da Prat, Maria Bres Bullrich, Pilar Sanchez, Galeno Rojas
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Ubiquity Press 2017-12-01
• Series: Tremor and Other Hyperkinetic Movements
• Subjects: Neurology; Tremor; Hemichorea-hemiballism; Sertraline; Sertraline-induced hemichorea; Case study; Hemichorea
• Online Access: https://tremorjournal.org/index.php/tremor/article/view/518

Background: Hemichorea–hemiballism is a syndrome secondary to different etiologies. Drug-induced hemichorea is a rare syndrome related to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. To the best of our knowledge, no previous cases of hemichorea associated with sertraline have been reported. Case Report: A 65-year-old female noticed hemichorea 1 week after initiation of sertraline. After extensive investigations, other causes of hemichorea were excluded. Hemichorea remitted after sertraline withdrawal. Discussion: In our patient, temporal association and the negative clinical assessment supported a diagnosis of likely drug-induced involuntary movement. We hypothesized that enhanced serotonergic transmission in the ventral tegmental area or nigrostriatum may be involved in sertraline-induced hemichorea.