According to the findings of a new study, women who take certain antidepressant drugs like Paxil during the early stages of pregnancy may have an increased risk of miscarriage. The researchers involved in the study, which was published in the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology in October, conducted a nationwide cohort study of 1,279,840 pregnancies in Denmark between 1997 and 2010, and found that women who used an SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor) antidepressant in early pregnancy had a 27% increased risk of miscarriage. If you believe you have been adversely affected by side effects of Paxil or another potentially dangerous pharmaceutical drug, contact our knowledgeable drug injury lawyers at Bandas Law Firm today to explore your possible compensation options.
SSRI ANTIDEPRESSANTS AND MISCARRIAGE
SSRI antidepressant drugs like Paxil, Zoloft and Prozac are some of the most widely used antidepressant medications in the United States, but mounting research has tied the popular drugs to an increased risk of birth defects and other problems when taken during pregnancy. According to this new study, women who took Paxil or another SSRI antidepressant during the first 35 days of pregnancy had a 12.6% chance of suffering a miscarriage, compared to a 11.1% risk among women who did not take an SSRI drug while pregnant. Unfortunately, the researchers also found that even women who stopped taking an SSRI drug three to 12 months before becoming pregnant had a 24% increased risk of miscarriage, a finding that highlights the long-lasting effects of the powerful drugs.
POTENTIAL SIDE EFFECTS OF SSRI MEDICATIONS
Despite the popularity of SSRI antidepressant drugs like Zoloft and Paxil, serious concerns have been raised recently about the safety of the medications, particularly regarding the potential risk of serious birth defects among babies exposed to SSRI drugs in utero. In a study published in the British Medical Journal in January 2014, researchers found that SSRI antidepressant drugs were tied to an increased risk of babies being born with a potentially life-threatening heart and lung malformation called persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn (PPHN). In December 2011, the FDA issued a drug safety communication warning consumers and the medical community about the link between SSRI antidepressants and PPHN, but drug regulators said that the association was unclear due to conflicting data.
OUR PAXIL LAWYERS CAN HELP
PPHN isn’t the only birth defect potentially associated with SSRI use in pregnancy though. In June 2007, researchers found a connection between the use of Zoloft and other SSRI antidepressants in early pregnancy and a risk of brain defects, gastrointestinal malformations and abnormal skull development, and in September 2009, another study found that SSRI antidepressants increase the risk of heart defects among babies, when taken during the first trimester of pregnancy, a time when many women don’t even know they are pregnant. Other devastating birth defects allegedly linked to the use of SSRI antidepressants in pregnancy include cleft lip, limb defects, neural tube defects, cleft palate, anal atresia, and more. If you took an SSRI antidepressant like Paxil while pregnant, and you suffered a miscarriage, or your baby was born with a serious birth defect, consult our drug injury attorneys at Bandas Law Firm for legal help.
Source:
http://journals.lww.com/greenjournal/Abstract/2014/10000/Exposure_to_Selective_Serotonin_Reuptake.2.aspx
