Additional Information
Antidepressants & Birth Injuries
If your child was diagnosed with Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension (PPHN) at birth, and you have taken Paxil or any other selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) antidepressant during the third trimester of pregnancy, please contact us right away.
Even if PPHN was not specifically diagnosed, if you took an SSRI and your child had breathing-related difficulties at birth and is now experiencing developmental delays, we’d like to talk to you. Our PPHN lawyers may be able to shed light on the benefits of litigation for your circumstances.
About SSRIs and Pregnancy
Millions of young women have turned to prescription antidepressants and, lacking adequate warnings from pharmaceutical manufacturers, continue to take the drugs while they are pregnant.
One particular class of antidepressants – called selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI) – has been linked to serious birth defects when taking during pregnancy. In particular, SSRIs have been linked to Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension in Newborns (PPHN).
SSRIs include:
- Paxil
- Zoloft
- Prozac
- Celexa
- Cipralex
- Effexor
- Luvox
- Remeron
About PPHN
Symptoms of PPHN appear immediately at birth.
In a normal birth, a baby takes its first breath and the lungs expand. The lungs add oxygen to the lungs, and the pulmonary arteries expand to carry this oxygenated blood throughout the body.
In a child with PPHN, the pulmonary arteries do not expand. In addition to starving vital organs, including the brain, of oxygen, this can cause a dangerous increase in blood pressure.
The good news about PPHN is that it can be treated to alleviate the immediate symptoms. These babies can appear normal after treatment. Unfortunately, every second their organs lacked oxygen could have caused serious damage which may not show up for several months.
This damage was also preventable if doctors and their patients had adequate warnings about the dangers of taking SSRIs during the third trimester of pregnancy.
Unfortunately, the bad news about PPHN is that many children who have PPHN-related symptoms at birth may later have marked developmental delays.
Exploring the Link Between SSRIs and PPHN
If you took an SSRI during the third trimester of pregnancy, and your newborn had respiratory complications during his or her first minutes of life, our PPHN lawyers would like to speak with you. We are investigating the link between SSRIs and PPHN and whether drug manufacturers hid the dangers of the popular medications.
If took SSRIs during pregnancy and your child experienced respiratory problems at birth, and your child is now experiencing developmental delays, the PPHN lawyers at SimmonsCooper LLC would also like to talk to you. There is a good chance these delays were caused by PPHN, which in turn may be linked to the medications.
Please contact us for a free legal consultation.
News
