The world of antidepressants continues to evolve as new information is revealed nearly on a daily basis. While such medications are highly effective in achieving the goals for which they are prescribed, some have been shown to have great risk in some particular situations, including pregnancy. For instance, some women who took Paxil® during their pregnancy were later found to have a higher instance of giving birth to a child affected with Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension in Newborns or PPHN – a rare but serious ailment that obstructs a newborn baby’s blood from reaching its lungs and thus oxygenating its blood.

PPHN is just now beginning to really reach the level wherein medical professionals are taking notice of its connection with Paxil®. Certainly Paxil® is not the only Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) associated with birth defects resulting from the mothers taking the drug during pregnancy. Quite a few have been linked to low birth weight, higher instance of prematurity, and heart and cranial birth defects.

But those women who used Paxil® during the first trimester of pregnancy were shown to have a higher than average incidence of birth defects. Paxil® taken during the second or third trimester – after the twenty week mark - has been shown to significantly increase the chances of PPHN in the newborn. In fact, studies of Paxil® use during this time in pregnancy have shown that women are nearly six times as likely to have a child affected by PPHN.

Parents of children affected by PPHN may turn to Paxil® attorneys in California to help guide them through the legalities of a birth defect or product liability lawsuit. A lawsuit of this kind may be brought against drug manufacturers or those medical professionals that prescribed – or did not caution against - Paxil® during pregnancy.

Popularity: 41% [?]

Share This