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Missouri couple filed a lawsuit against Pfizer after their child died from alleged Zoloft-attributed birth defects. This is another antidepressant-linked child death. Pfizer is the manufacturer of the antidepressant Zoloft, brand name for setraline.
The lawsuit was filed in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York on October 26, 2011. The tragic incident occurred on October 29, 2009. Paula Peska and Scott Day bore a child with a Tetralogy of Fallot. That sickness is an atrial septal heart defect that was possibly due to Peskas use of Zoloft during pregnancy. The infant survived only one day before passing away.
Pfizer knew of the dangerous birth defects associated with Zoloft use during pregnancy from the preclinical studies and the subsequent published studies confirming these risks. Pfizer took no action to properly study Zoloft or did not properly publish the results of the studies it did do, which would have reflected that risk, the lawsuit claims.
Moreover, it stated that Pfizer failed to adequately warn or remedy the risks, but instead concealed, suppressed and failed to disclose the dangers. Even in the face of numerous published studies, Pfizer continues to deny these dangers and will not revise its drug labeling.
This is not the first incident of antidepressant causing unfortunate incidents. The BCLocalNews.com previously published an article on a British Columbian couple. The mother, Christiane Schultz, was prescribed Effexor while pregnant and on February 21, 2009, she gave birth to her son, Matthew. Unluckily, he died a mere two hours after birth. Christiane and husband Amery claimed that her use of Effexor while pregnant contributed to Matthew's death. From then on, they have been trying to raise awareness on the hazards of antidepressant drugs to pregnant women and their children.
According to the studies, there is a wide range of birth defects linked to Zoloft, among them cardiovascular malformations in the form of atrial septal defects and ventricular septal defects.These usually happen when the mother took Zoloft during the first trimester of pregnancy, during which the babys heart was still developing in the womb. Moreover, pulmonary hypertension of the newborn (PPHN) is another Zoloft side effect. It is some kind of high blood pressure in babies lungs. It can really be serious and can lead to death in extreme cases. Craniosynostosis (skull deformation) and limb abnormalities are also other birth injuries that are attributed to Zoloft. These defects can be very serious. While some after-effects can mend on their own, others cannot and can even lead to further operations and complications.
According to FDA, health care professionals should avoid prescribing Zoloft in women who are pregnant or are planning pregnancy, unless other treatment options are not appropriate."
The public should also be informed about the numerous
Zoloft lawsuit being filed presently by affected patients against Pfizer, the drug manufacturer.
