Zoloft Causes Birth Defects
, the second most prescribed antidepressant drug in 2011, has been proven to cause birth defects during the first trimester of pregnancy. The problem with this is that many women do not know they’re pregnant until the possible damage could have been done.
Some of the proven birth defects include heart defects, which when studied amongst a group of patients, are at a level that is twice or even three times that of the control group of women that did not take the anti-depressant medications. But, even with studies clearly showing the correlation between the two, the pharmaceutical companies claim that these medications are safe for pregnant mothers to take. They stated in the New England Journal of Medicine that these “specific defects implicated are rare and the absolute risks are small.”
Pfizer, the pharmaceutical company that brought Zoloft to the market, is under fire because many believe that they failed to provide warnings about the drug’s effects. Medications such as Zoloft are not only linked to heart defects, but also other birth defects such as cleft lip, pulmonary hypertension, and autism spectrum disorder.
The pharmaceutical companies must warn patients of all of the possible effects of these antidepressant drugs. If this is not done by the companies, patients with children that have suffered unfortunate consequences may hold the companies liable.
There have been numerous Zoloft lawsuits filed, and next month they will all be consolidated. The lawsuits will be a multi-district litigation with one judge.
If you have taken an antidepressant drug during pregnancy, causing your child to be born with birth defects, call our office. Our lawyers will help you to file a case, and guide you toward a favorable settlement.
