Women who were prescribed medication to deal with a neurological disorder that impacts one in 10 Americans have said that the drugs made them seek out risky sexual behaviors, according to a report out of the U.K.
Last year, a survey from the American Academy of Sleep Medicine found 13% of Americans report that they have been diagnosed with Restless Leg Syndrome (RLS), a neurological disorder that is characterized by a need to move the legs as well as sensations such as itching and crawling. One type of medication used to treat the condition is called a dopamine agonist.
According to the Cleveland Clinic, these medications “have similar effects to one of your brain’s key signaling chemicals, dopamine,” and are typically used to treat movement disorders. Another condition they are prescribed for is Parkinson’s Disease.
“Dopamine agonists mimic the effects of dopamine. That can affect your behavior, especially your self-control abilities. That can lead to compulsive behaviors, meaning you can’t manage them,” said the clinic. Impulse control issues associated with the medication can include hypersexuality.
This week, the BBC reported that 20 women who were prescribed dopamine agonists for RLS said their doctors did not warn them about that potential side effect. These women told the outlet that the medications “ruined their lives.”
A woman identified in the BBC report as “Claire” said that she was prescribed a dopamine agonist drug called Ropinirole after developing RLS during her pregnancies that remained after she gave birth. While the drug worked well to treat her RLS, Claire said she started to feel strange sexual urges after about a year.
“The only way I could describe it is it was just deviant,” she told the BBC. It said that she “began leaving her house in the early hours of the morning to cruise for sex,” while wearing a see through top and jacket. Claire also said she would flash any man she could find, even in dangerous locations, even though she had a partner.
It took years for her to eventually connect the urges with the Ropinirole medication. When Claire stopped taking it, the urges disappeared almost immediately. However, it left her feeling shame and mortification afterwards.
Other women said they also racked up debt from compulsive shopping and gambling while on dopamine agonists.
According to the BBC, a report by drugs firm GSK – the maker of Ropinirole – indicated it had known of a link between as dopamine agonist drugs and what is described as “deviant” sexual behavior since 2003. Though Claire also used the word, the BBC said she was not aware of the GSK report, which reportedly cited a case of a man who had sexually assaulted a child while taking the drug for Parkinson’s.
“While there is no explicit reference to this side effect in patient leaflets, the UK medicines regulator told us there was a general warning about increased libido and harmful behavior,” said the BBC. “GSK says a risk of ‘altered’ sexual interest is also referred to in the leaflets.”
Valerie Voon, a professor of neuropsychiatry at the University of Cambridge cited by the BBC, noted that cases of “deviant” sexual behaviors related to medication are often under-reported. She explained that stigma and shame prevent patients from admitting to the actions, which many don’t realize are associated with the drugs.
“The 20 sufferers we spoke to say not only had doctors failed to tell them of the potentially serious side effects of the drugs, but also failed to review the impact of the medication on their bodies subsequently,” said the BBC.
It added that a class action suit was brought against GSK in 2011 by four sufferers of Parkinson’s disease who said Ropinirole led to gambling debts and broken relationships and that GSK failed to include any warnings in its product literature until March 2007. Although the class action was settled, GSK denied liability.
“In a statement, GSK told the BBC Ropinirole had been prescribed for more than 17 million treatments and undergone ‘extensive clinical trials.’ It added the drug had proven to be effective and had a ‘well-characterized safety profile.’”
Additionally, the company said that it shared the information about “deviant” sexual behavior that was discovered in 2003 with health authorities. Currently, a patient information leaflet for Ropinirole found in the U.K. does specifically reference changes in sexual interest on five occasions.
According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced discontinuation of all dosage strengths of ropinirole hydrochloride (Requip) tablets as well as the 2-mg extended release (Requip XL) tablets in 2019.
“The FDA announcement indicates that the discontinuation of ropinirole tablets is due to a ‘business decision’ made by pharmaceutical manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline [GSK],” said the AASM.
In the U.S., information about Ropinirole available through the National Library of Medicine and Medline Plus references increased sexual drive and increased sexual urges as risk factors. A Massachusetts General Hospital clinician-researcher has launched a website last year for healthcare providers treating patients with RLS. A press release about the site noted that “many healthcare providers are overprescribing dopamine agonists and struggle to help patients,” with side effects from medication.