Ask the doctor: Do antidepressants cause cataracts?

Q. Is it true that some antidepressants might cause cataracts?

A. One large observational study in Canada — the first of its type — suggested that patients using selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) or serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) were more at risk of developing cataracts than people who were not taking these drugs. It may be helpful to keep in mind that this was just one study using retrospective data, and it does not prove cause and effect. For several reasons, I'm advising my patients to continue getting the eye exams their ophthalmologists recommend, but not to get too alarmed by this study's results.