Paxil company charged with birth defects lawsuit

The first Paxil lawsuit against GlaxoSmithKline over alleged birth defects caused by their antidepressant, began yesterday in Philadelphia. About 600 similar claims involving heart defects and other injuries suffered by babies born to women who used Paxil were filed.

Michelle David claims that her use of Paxil resulted in life-threatening heart defects in her three-year-old son, Lyam Kilker. She says that GlaxoSmithKline knew about the potential for Paxil to cause birth defects, but failed to warn users. David's son was born with holes in his heart that had to be addressed with multiple surgeries before he was six months old, which the lawsuit says is the result of her use of Paxil. David maintains that she would not have taken the drug if she had known of the potential risk to her then unborn child.

The FDA released an alert on December 8, 2005, that studies showed the drug could increase the risk of heart defects in infants when taken during the first three months of pregnancy. The agency also required the company to update Paxil label warnings to include the risk of birth defects.

GlaxoSmithKline officials say there is no conclusive evidence that Paxil causes birth defects, and intend to argue that the injury suffered by the plaintiff's son was not caused by the use of Paxil. Paxil was originally approved in 1992 and has become one of the most commonly prescribed drugs in the nation, with sales of just under $1 billion in 2008.

If you took Paxil while you were pregnate, please contact us. We have medical staff that can assist us in reviewing your individual case for at no cost to you.