Zoloft Birth Defects and Lawsuits Closely Linked

A significant number of women who took Zoloft while pregnant, especially during the first trimester of pregnancy, have experienced the trauma and hardship of giving birth to a child with often-serious Zoloft birth defects. Zoloft is one of the most popular anti-depressant medications on the market in many countries today, and is an SSRI, meaning that it works by blocking the reuptake of the feel-good chemical serotonin in the brain, helping patients with conditions like depression, obsessive compulsive disorder, post traumatic stress disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and many other conditions manage and regulate their symptoms. However, although Zoloft has benefited many people with some of the most common psychological conditions in the world, it also comes with a wide variety of often serious Zoloft side effects.

Severe Birth Defects Linked To Pfizer’s Antidepressant Zoloft

Zoloft, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor antidepressant (SSRI), has been named in a lawsuit that claims it caused a baby to be born with a fatal birth defect called anencephaly. Anencephaly is a neural tube defect, “generally described as the absence of a large part of the brain and skull,” according to the Zoloft lawsuit. According to a report from Courthouse News Service, the Zoloft anencephaly lawsuit was filed by Susan and James Hodge of Alaska filed their suit in Ohio’s Cuyahoga Court of Common Pleas. Defendants named in the complaint include Pfizer, the maker of Zoloft, and Cardinal Health. The couple accuses Pfizer of covering up studies that documented this case of anencephaly as linked to Zoloft birth defect.

Cardiac Anomalies Associated With Zoloft

The risk of birth defects from SSRI’s (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) antidepressant, such as the popularly prescribed Zoloft, has been a concern for several years. In 2006, the FDA released a public health advisory that antidepressant side effects could cause serious injury to infants if taken by the mother after the 20th week of pregnancy, including a six-fold increase in the risk of the child suffering from Zoloft PPHN. In 2009, a study found that use of SSRI antidepressants, such as Zoloft, during the first three months of pregnancy could double the risk of septal heart defects in newborns. Persistent pulmonary hypertension in newborns (PPHN) may be caused as a side effect of Zoloft, and other SSRI drugs, when taken after the 20th week of pregnancy.  In November 2006,

No Warning of Zoloft Link To Spina Bifida, Despite Evidence

Zoloft (sertraline) is a second generation antidepressant that is made by Pfizer, which is part of a class of medications known as SSRI antidepressants (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors). Generic Zoloft equivalents are also available from a number of drug makers. Use of the antidepressant during pregnancy has been linked to an increased risk of Zoloft persistent pulmonary hypertension in newborns (PPHN), as well as other birth malformations and defects, such as: septal heart defects, hypoplastic left or right heart syndrome, spina bifida, autism and infant death. According to allegations raised in Zoloft lawsuits, the drug makers failed to adequately research the effect of the medication when used during pregnancy

Zoloft Lawyers Dealing with Off-Label Cases

Zoloft is a popular medication used to treat a myriad of psychological conditions, and has been approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat depression, anxiety disorders, panic disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and premenstrual dysphoric disorder, although some patients are experiencing tragic side effects of Zoloft. In addition, many doctors and patients have found it to be effective in treating other conditions, including generalized anxiety disorder, premature ejaculation, diabetic neuropathy, fibromyalgia, and migraine headache. However, Zoloft suicide and suicidal ideations has become a controversial claim of some victims. The conditions that Zoloft is used for both according to Food and Drug Administration approval and its off-label

Zoloft Lawsuits Over Birth Defects on the Rise

Women and families are filing suit against antidepressant drug Zoloft in record numbers after it was linked to a series of serious Zoloft birth defects. This SSRI drug is the most popular anti-depressant medication in the world, which can also be used to treat other conditions, including anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder, post traumatic stress disorder, and panic attacks. These are among the most common psychological disorders known, and millions of people worldwide are affected by them. As the number of users of medications like Zoloft continues to rise, so do the instances of serious side effects of Zoloft, of which birth defect is among the most concerning. Although Zoloft carries a warning label advising patients not to use it in the first three months of pregnancy, this was not always the case.

The Food and Drug Administration first released warnings about Zoloft birth defects along with drugmaker Pfizer in September of 2005. The only birth defects mentioned in this specific warning were cardiac birth defects, some of the most serious Zoloft has been linked to. Zoloft heart defects can

Zoloft Birth Defects Latest in Series of Lawsuits

Zoloft is a popular SSRI anti-depressant that functions by helping the serotonin that is naturally produced by the brain to do its job more effectively. Serotonin is a “feel-good” chemical and helps to balance moods and keep people happy. Zoloft and other SSRI drugs have been approved to treat disorders like post-traumatic stress disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, anxiety disorders and panic attacks, and clinical depression.

Shortly after its introduction into the United States’ pharmaceuticals market in 1992, patients began experiencing and reporting Zoloft side effects. One of the most common and most worrisome side effects was an increase in suicidal thoughts and behaviors, especially in children and young adults. In 2004, the Food and Drug Administration mandated that all SSRI drugs have a “black box” warning placed on their packaging to advise patients about the heightened risk of suicide or suicide ideation. There has also been a link to severe birth defects and Zoloft.

Zoloft Lawyers Help Patients

Andrea Roberts may be one of the victims of serious Zoloft side effects – although she can’t testify about it herself. Neither can her husband and two children – Roberts shot them and then herself a week after picking up her Zoloft prescription, which her family says only served to worsen her condition. Zoloft is a medication commonly prescribed to treat psychological disorders such as obsessive compulsive disorder, post traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, and depression. It is an SSRI drug, meaning that it works by blocking the reuptake of the feel-good chemical serotonin in the brain. Many people take Zoloft and similar drugs to help manage conditions that would otherwise go untreated. However, a number of patients have had negative experiences with a series of serious side effects associated with the drug. These side effects include birth defects and complications for older people, as well as  suicidal thoughts with the risk of Zoloft suicide.

In 2004 a black box warning was placed on all SSRI drugs warning patients of the possibility of an increased number of suicidal thoughts and actions. However, the warning only addressed the number of teenagers and young adults who had taken the drug and experienced suicidal thoughts or even committed suicide. It said nothing about adults – and that is why Andrea Roberts’ family is filing a Zoloft lawsuit against