Recently, I found an article titled “Birth outcomes in pregnant women taking fluoxetine.”, appearing in the October 1996 edition of The New England Journal of Medicine, amounting to one of the oldest articles studying the link between gestational Prozac exposure and adverse birth outcomes. Over the past two decades, many studies have been published linking SSRIs and birth defects or otherwise negative perinatal outcomes.
Accordingly, the team writes, “Although fluoxetine is the most frequently prescribed antidepressant drug in the United States, its safety in pregnant women has not been established.”
Results of this small study showed that “Among the 97 infants exposed to fluoxetine who were evaluated for minor anomalies, the incidence of three or more minor anomalies was significantly higher than among 153 similarly examined control infants (15.5 percent vs. 6.5 percent, P=0.03).”
Chambers et al. (1996) continue: “As compared with the 101 infants exposed to fluoxetine only during the first and second trimesters, the 73 infants exposed during the third trimester had higher rates of premature delivery (relative risk, 4.8; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.1 to 20.8), admission to special-care nurseries (relative risk, 2.6; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.1 to 6.9), and poor neonatal adaptation, including respiratory difficulty, cyanosis on feeding, and jitteriness (relative risk, 8.7; 95 percent confidence interval, 2.9 to 26.6). Birth weight was also lower and birth length shorter in infants exposed fluoxetine late in gestation.”
That means that babies exposed to Prozac before birth were more likely to have minor birth defects, premature birth, low birth weight, poor neonatal adaptation, require special-care nursery, and other negative birth outcomes.
Because so many women have taken Prozac during pregnancy unaware of the risks posed to the developing fetus, a number of Prozac birth defect lawsuits have been filed.
If you or a loved one used Prozac and gave birth to a child with a congenital malformation or who had perinatal complications, you may be entitled to significant financial compensation. For a free, no-obligation case consultation, contact our team of Prozac® birth defect lawyers at the information provided below. We have the experience, resources, and skills required to win the justice you deserve. Call today and see how we can help.
(855) 452 – 5529
Our SSRI Birth Defects Lawsuit Information page is a great place to start if you have any questions about SSRIs and Birth Defects.