Side Effects

Within recent years, studies have shown that the side effects of Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressant drugs like Paxil may be much more serious than originally suspected.

Initially, the only Paxil side effects associated with the drug were dry mouth, loss of appetite, constipation, nervousness, increased sweating, diarrhea, weight loss, nausea, dizziness, vomiting, decreased sexual desire and trouble sleeping.

In the past several years, however, researchers have identified a link between taking these drugs during pregnancy and serious birth defects like:

• heart defects
• club foot
• skull deformities
• defects of the brain and spine
• lung defects and,
• abdominal defects

These severe conditions like septal defects, PPHN, spina bifida, craniosynostosis and omphalocele can require extensive treatment and cause years of pain and discomfort for a child.  In some extreme cases, they can even be fatal.

Experts fear that millions of those who have taken Paxil may have been expectant mothers who were not warned of the dangerous Paxil side effects. Fortunately, legal help is available for those children and families affected.

If you suspect that Paxil side effects may have caused your child’s birth defect, it is important to speak with an attorney as soon as possible about your legal options. You may be entitled to a substantial recovery for their condition, however, time is limited.

Paxil Heart Side Effects

The U.S. FDA and Aarhus University in Denmark first warned after 2005 that SSRI antidepressant drugs like Paxil could cause serious heart birth defects like Atrial Septal Defects (ASD) and Ventricular Septal Defects (VSD).

These Paxil side effects occur when the heart does not develop properly in the early stages of pregnancy, and holes form in the walls of the heart chambers.

Paxil Club Foot Side Effects

Perhaps the most visible of the birth defects related to Paxil is club foot. This condition occurs when the bones, joints and muscles of the lower leg form improperly, causing the foot to grow facing inward. This can require extensive surgery and rehabilitation to fix.

Studies from Boston University and the Institute of Reproductive Toxicology at the University of Ulm, Germany recently discovered that taking SSRI drugs like Paxil during pregnancy could increase the risk of club foot.

Paxil Lung Side Effects

In 2006, a study conducted at the University of California at San Diego was published which showed that taking drugs like Paxil during pregnancy could also increase the risk of Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension in Newborns (PPHN) by as much as 600%.

PPHN is a lung disorder where an infant’s circulatory system does not adapt to breathing outside the womb.  High blood pressure in the lungs can also block oxygen-rich new blood from entering. PPHN can be a very serious or even fatal condition.

Paxil Neural Tube Side Effects

In 2007, the New England Journal of Medicine published a study indicating that SSRI drugs like Paxil could increase the risk of neural tube defects like anencephaly and spina bifida. These severe birth defects affect the brain and spinal cord.

Anencephaly and spina bifida are caused when the brain or spinal column of the fetus do not fully develop, which can lead to brain damage, nerve damage, paralysis, infant death or early termination of labor.

Paxil Cranial Side Effects

Research published by the National Birth Defects Prevention Study of Infants and New England Journal of Medicine in 2007 also linked SSRI drugs like Paxil to cranial defects such as craniosynostosis.

Craniosynostosis is a birth defect where the head develops with an irregular or enlarged shape after the sutures connecting the individual skull bones fuse prematurely.

Paxil Abdominal Side Effects

Research published in the National Birth Defects Prevention Study of Infants and New England Journal of Medicine also indicated taking drugs like Paxil during pregnancy can relate to abdominal birth defects such as omphalocele.

Omphalocele is a severe birth defect where the intestines and liver form in a sac outside the body due to the failure of the abdominal muscles to develop timely. This can take several surgeries and many years to repair.

If your child has suffered any birth defects as a side effect of taking Paxil, contact us today for a confidential evaluation of your case.  We are available 24 hours a day to answer your questions and provide help.

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