New Antidepressants Research Suggests Use During Pregnancy Could Lead to Early Labor, Infant Seizures

HEWLETT, NY, June 05, 2012 (Press-News.org) The Rottenstein Law Group, which represents clients with claims stemming from injuries and birth defects caused by Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) Zoloft and Paxil, has learned of research suggesting that pregnant women who take SSRIs to treat depression might be putting themselves at risk of going into earlier labor, or the rare occurrence of their newborn infants experiencing seizures.

According to a May 30 Reuters article, new findings published in the May 2, 2012 online edition of the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology taken from a study conducted at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in Nashville, TN, show that women who took an antidepressant like Zoloft or Paxil during the second or third trimester were more likely to give birth earlier than their estimated due dates, and newborns born to mothers who took the medication were at greater risk of having seizures.

Researchers discovered that among nearly 229,000 infants born to women in Tennessee who participated in the study, the mothers who took antidepressants during their second trimester tended to give birth earlier than those that didn't. Data shows that mothers who "filled two or three antidepressant prescriptions during the second trimester," gave birth four to five days earlier, on average, than mothers that didn't take antidepressants. Moreover, newborn infants were at higher risk of having a seizure if mothers took antidepressants during the third trimester. Reuters quotes one of the researchers, Dr. Richard C. Shelton, a professor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, as saying, "Newborn seizures are uncommon - however - so even with a relative increase in risk, the risk to any one baby is very small."

Dr. Shelton went on to say that "[S]topping antidepressants during pregnancy if possible is the safest bet. Basic recommendation is that if a woman can come off antidepressants, that's probably the best course to take." Shelton also suggested that "Women always have to talk with their own doctors about [taking antidepressants during pregnancy]."

The Rottenstein Law Group's Zoloft Lawsuit Information Center contains social media features that allow for easy sharing on sites like Facebook and Twitter, which enables visitors to spread the word about the potential dangers associated with Zoloft. The firm encourages visitors to link to its sites from their own blogs and Web sites to spread information about dangerous drugs and defective medical devices.

About the Rottenstein Law Group
The Rottenstein Law Group is a New York-based law firm that represents clients in mass tort actions. The firm was founded by Rochelle Rottenstein, a lawyer with over two decades of experience in compassionate representation of clients in consumer product injury, mass tort, and class action law suits. For more information, please visit their Web site, or call (888) 9-ROT-LAW.

Website: http://www.rotlaw.com