06/20/2011
(courtesy photo)
Side effect Paxil. Pregnant women who take Paxil while pregnant, especially during their first trimester, are at an increased risk for having a child born with a birth defect. Recent studies have suggested that women who took Paxil during pregnancy were at an increased risk for having a baby with heart malformations when compared to other antidepressants or to women who were not taking any antidepressants. One study has also linked Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension of the Newborn (PPHN) to the side effects of Paxil.
In December 2005, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a Paxil warning to doctors, other healthcare professionals and consumers regarding the increased risks for Paxil birth defects when the antidepressant is taken during the first trimester of pregnancy. Most of the birth defects included heart defects and, in most cases, were atrial and ventricular septal defects. Both of which are characterized by holes in the walls of the chambers of the heart. A heart related Paxil birth defect can range in severity from minor, which may resolve without treatment, to severe conditions which usually require surgical repair.
The New England Journal of Medicine published a study that linked Paxil to PPHN several months after the initial FDA warning for Paxil users. The results from the study indicated that women who use Paxil during the last trimester of pregnancy were six times more likely to have a baby born with PPHN than women who did not use any antidepressants during pregnancy. A PPHN Paxil side effectrequires prompt diagnosis and treatment, and even then the conditions may prove fatal. Babies who survive the initial trauma of PPHN frequently suffer permanent damage. Damages include hearing and speech as well as damage to the brain which may result in developmental delays and neurological defects. Other possible birth defects from Paxil include difficulties with breathing, seizures, vomiting, low blood sugar, tremors and irritability.
Due to the risk of a child experiencing the adverse effects of Paxil, the FDA has asked the manufacturer of the drug, GlaxoSmithKline, to change the Paxil pregnancy categoryfrom C to D.
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