Onset of psoriasis during therapy with fluoxetine

Psoriasis is a commonly diagnosed skin disorder that requires a long-term management and can have a profound impact on the quality of life of patients. Drugs that have been associated with the precipitation or exacerbation of psoriasis include lithium, beta-adrenergic receptor blocking agents and antimalarials. Despite extensive use of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) in clinical practice, there have been very few reports of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor-related psoriasis. The main purpose of this study was to report fluoxetine-induced psoriasis in two Chinese women.

Although both patients had been taking fluoxetine for an extended period of time, the time scale of these two case studies suggests that fluoxetine played a causative role in these patients' psoriasis.