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Zoloft may cause birth defects when a woman takes it during pregnancy. If you or a loved one has given birth to a child with a birth defect and the mother took Zoloft during pregnancy, you may be entitled to financial compensation. The same is true for drugs Wellbutrin and Zyban.

Zoloft is prescribed for many purposes.  Sertraline is used to treat depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder (bothersome thoughts that won’t go away and the need to perform certain actions over and over), panic attacks (sudden, unexpected attacks of extreme fear and worry about these attacks), posttraumatic stress disorder and others. Regardless of the reason of prescription, women who take this drug may experience a greater than average risk of infant child birth defects, including but not limited to heart defects, cleft palate, cleft lip, skeletal deformations and more. If your child experienced such a horrific side effect, please call our team of Zoloft lawyers today for a free case evaluation on how we can help.

Do I Have a Zoloft Lawsuit?

Zoloft Birth Defect: Do I Have A Lawsuit?

Marisol Smith, a Texas woman, initiated a wrongful death lawsuit against Pfizer and Greenstone LLC on July 17, 2013, holding antidepressant drug Zoloft responsible for the death of her infant son two years ago. According to the Zoloft lawsuit filed in a Philadelphia federal court, the plaintiff took Sertraline, a generic version of Zoloft, until she discontinued it in February 2011 after learning about her pregnancy. She resumed the antidepressant after a gap of two months and continued until her son was born in June 2011 with a number of birth deformities, including atrial septal defect and respiratory distress syndrome. The infant was placed on ventilator and underwent blood transfusion necessitated by pulmonary and intraventricular bleedings until his death five days later.

The Zoloft lawsuit claims that both Zoloft producer Pfizer and generic version manufacturer Greenstone failed in their duty to inform the public about potential birth defect side effects the antidepressant could have for pregnant women or those in their childbearing age. The plaintiff also alleges that the manufacturer was aware of Zoloft birth defect problems earlier than reported, but the drug was marketed without any warning to highlight hazards linked to it. Zoloft was promoted as safe without any testing done for side effects on pregnant women.

Zoloft Lawsuit: Common Side Effect Injuries

Mrs Smith’s Zoloft lawsuit accuses the manufacturers of negligence, misrepresentation, fraud, and breach of warranty and seeks damages for her suffering on the ground of strict liability. Zoloft, a Sertraline-based selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor, was among the most prescribed antidepressant in the last decade. However, a spate of studies and reports published in the last few years have led to a surge in Zoloft lawsuits citing wrongful death and deformities in children born to women who took the drug.

The most reported Zoloft birth defect injuries include

• fatal deformities or malformations leading to death
• heart valve defect
• brain deformities
• neurological disorder and behavioral syndrome
• underdeveloped vertebra
• spina bifida
• intraventricular bleeding
• pulmonary embolism
• underdeveloped and malformed skull
• cranial defects
• neural tube defects
• cleft palates
• autism

Zoloft Side Effects for Adults

Adults taking Zoloft are likely to suffer from post-surgery bleeding, brain hemorrhage, and surgical complications. The SSRI antidepressant has also been linked to sexual dysfunction in male users and vaginal swelling in females. Zoloft discontinuation results in withdrawal syndrome and suicidal tendency. According to a 2011 research report, the antidepressant enhances the risk of heart attack and stroke in men. It causes atherosclerosis, a key factor contributing to such a risk. Zoloft side effects may also manifest in respiratory arrest, infertility, brain neuron death, and dyskinesia.

Zoloft Lawsuit

Parents of children born with birth defects or those born with congenital deformities due to Zoloft side effects have the right to seek punitive damages and other compensation from the drug manufactures for their suffering. Over 500 federal Zoloft lawsuits have been centralized in the court of Judge Cynthia Rufe of Pennsylvania. About 100 Zoloft birth defect litigations have been filed in state courts of New York, West Virginia, Illinois, Louisiana, Missouri, and other states. A group of St. Louis women has sought class action status to their Zoloft lawsuit. The first federal trial is expected to begin in mid-October 2014 while new litigants continue to approach courts claiming product liability, misrepresentation, fraud, and strict liability.

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NOTE: Our team of attorneys will review potential cases for all fifty states, including Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin and Wyoming.

FREE CASE EVALUATION: 1-800-632-1404

Zoloft may cause birth defects when a woman takes it during pregnancy. If you or a loved one has given birth to a child with a birth defect and the mother took Zoloft during pregnancy, you may be entitled to financial compensation. The same is true for drugs Wellbutrin and Zyban.

Zoloft is prescribed for many purposes.  Sertraline is used to treat depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder (bothersome thoughts that won’t go away and the need to perform certain actions over and over), panic attacks (sudden, unexpected attacks of extreme fear and worry about these attacks), posttraumatic stress disorder and others. Regardless of the reason of prescription, women who take this drug may experience a greater than average risk of infant child birth defects, including but not limited to heart defects, cleft palate, cleft lip, skeletal deformations and more. If your child experienced such a horrific side effect, please call our team of Zoloft lawyers today for a free case evaluation on how we can help.

Side Effects

Latest Studies Link Zoloft To Risk of Autism, Bleeding Complications

Antidepressant Zoloft, which has been subject of hundreds of birth defect lawsuits against Pfizer, may also enhance the risk of post-surgery complications in users and autism in children born to them. The FDA allowed Pfizer to market the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor in 1991 and it became a top-selling drug within years. However, birth of babies with deformities to mothers, who took Zoloft during their pregnancy, led to the filing of a number of birth defect lawsuits. Researchers also found ample evidence linking the antidepressant to lung, cranial, heart, spinal vertebra, and other types of congenital defects in children born to women using the drug.

Zoloft Autism Risk

Zoloft doubles the risk of autism in children born to women treated with the antidepressant during pregnancy, according to the British Medical Journal. A report published in the April edition highlights findings by British and Swedish researchers that link Zoloft and similar SSRIs to autism spectrum disorders. The study looked at case histories of more than 4,400 autistic children and studied a control group of over 40,000 children. Researchers discovered Zoloft and similar antidepressants put mothers at a two-fold risk of giving birth to babies who would be tested for autism. The study concluded that SSRI-class antidepressants were responsible for about 0.6% of all cases of children born with autism.

Kaiser Permanente researchers made similar claims earlier in July 2011. Their research findings published in the Archives of General Psychiatry was based on an analysis of 298 cases and over 1,500 controls. Researchers concentrated on Zoloft, Paxil, and Prozac, three serotonin-inhibitor antidepressants and found the risk of autism twice compared to non-serotonin inhibitor antidepressants. In August 2010, a U.S. Government-sponsored study was the first to warn about autism side effects of SSRI antidepressants.

Zoloft Side Effects and Bleeding Risk

Patients treated with Zoloft or similar SSRI antidepressants face a 10% higher risk of post-surgery complications. According to the JAMA Internal Medicine, patients taking such antidepressants are likely to suffer from excess bleeding or even death following surgery. A study published in the medical journal in April 2013 also warned of the re-hospitalization risk within 30 days of the surgery triggered by antidepressant bleeding side effects. Researchers analyzed records of over a half a million patients, who had surgeries between 2006 and 2009 in 375 hospitals across the country.

Zoloft Birth Defect Injuries

Reports of Zoloft birth defects appeared as early as 2002, a decade after millions used the SSRI antidepressant. Researchers linked the drug to a number of congenital deformities and malformations in newborns and disorders in pregnant women. In 2006, the FDA issued a warning following a huge number of complaints highlighting pulmonary hypertension in neonates caused by Zoloft side effects during pregnancy. It even forbade the use of the drug by expectant mothers beyond the 19th week of their pregnancy.

Subsequent research and post-marketing studies list the following major potential birth defects caused by Zoloft side effects during pregnancy.

• Pulmonary hypertension, ventricular septal deficiency, and defects in the heart valve
• Congenital neurological disorders
• Spina Bifida
• Brain and skull defects
• Neural tube malformations
• Congenital heart, face, and limb deformities
• Oral clefts
• Abdominal wall deformities
• Autism
• Transposition of great arteries
• Mental retardation
• Rectum malformation

According to a 2009 Zoloft side effect study published in the British Medical Journal, pregnant women taking Zoloft are twice more likely to give birth to babies with pulmonary hypertension. A 2012 Swedish study counted the risk as high as six times. These findings were echoed by a 2009 research paper made public by the British Medical Journal. The Neurology journal issued a warning in 2011 about the potential risk brain hemorrhaging because of Zoloft and similar drugs.

Zoloft Lawsuit

The number of Zoloft lawsuits against Pfizer has gone up in the recent years following enhanced consumer awareness and increased media reports highlighting its side effects. Over 500 Zoloft birth defect lawsuits filed in federal courts across the United States are centralized at the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. The product liability claims by plaintiffs are primarily based on the contention that Pfizer ignored potential Zoloft side effects, including birth defects, for commercial gains.

For a Free Case Evaluation:

TOLL FREE: 1-800-632-1404

EMAIL: click here

FILL OUT THIS FORM:

NOTE: Our team of attorneys will review potential cases for all fifty states, including Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin and Wyoming.

Zoloft may cause birth defects when a woman takes it during pregnancy. If you or a loved one has given birth to a child with a birth defect and the mother took Zoloft during pregnancy, you may be entitled to financial compensation. The same is true for drugs Wellbutrin and Zyban.

Zoloft is prescribed for many purposes.  Sertraline is used to treat depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder (bothersome thoughts that won’t go away and the need to perform certain actions over and over), panic attacks (sudden, unexpected attacks of extreme fear and worry about these attacks), posttraumatic stress disorder and others. Regardless of the reason of prescription, women who take this drug may experience a greater than average risk of infant child birth defects, including but not limited to heart defects, cleft palate, cleft lip, skeletal deformations and more. If your child experienced such a horrific side effect, please call our team of Zoloft lawyers today for a free case evaluation on how we can help.

First Birth Defect Trial Set

Zoloft Birth Defect Lawsuit: First Federal Trial Set for Oct 2014

The first of the hundreds of Zoloft birth defect lawsuits filed in various US federal courts is scheduled to go on trial in October 2014. More than 250 Zoloft lawsuits are consolidated at Pennsylvania east federal court of Judge Cynthia M. Rufe under the MDL provision. An order issued by Judge Rufe on February 25, 2013, has set a time line for selection and discovery that may culminate with the first trial starting on October 13, 2014.

More than 400 Zoloft birth defect lawsuits have been filed against Pfizer, claiming product liability and failure to warn expectant mothers about possible birth defects linked to its side effects. The plaintiffs include parents of children born with Zoloft birth injuries as well as many children suffering from Zoloft disability or malformations who have now turned adult. The lawsuits have sought to penalize Pfizer for marketing a drug without revealing its life threatening side effects and breaching consumer trust.

Zoloft Birth Defect Injuries: Research Reports

Zoloft was approved in 1991 to treat major depressive, stress, and obsessive-compulsive disorders. The drug went on to become a blockbuster for the manufacturer Pfizer until the FDA warning in November 2006 linked Zoloft side effects on pregnant women to persistent pulmonary hypertension in children born to them. The federal regulator received dozens of reports between 2002 and 2006 about children born with malformations to mothers treated with the anti-depressant during pregnancy.

A research report in the New England Journal of Medicine published in June 2007 was the first to highlight the danger of Zoloft birth defects, including permanent brain and heart problems. It was followed by a British Medical Journal report in September 2009 that warned about Zoloft side effect injuries impacting fetus in women less than three-month pregnant. It listed congenital heart problem in newborns as the most important Zoloft side effect injury.

In May 2012, a Tennessee Medicaid study result reported by American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology confirmed the above findings and cautioned that the birth defect Zoloft risk can increase by fivefold when the drug is administered to women in the sixth month of pregnancy.

In October 2012, a meta-analysis of more than 100 SSRI side effect studies brought out by the Human Reproduction journal highlighted a number of prenatal and neonatal injuries caused by Zoloft, such as miscarriage, pregnancy complications, congenital defects in vertebra, cranial defects, pulmonary hypertension, and neurobehavioral abnormalities.

According to the US National Academy of Science, pregnant women using Zoloft and similar antidepressants are more likely to give birth to children with impaired language development abilities. Such children are also at a greater risk of missing developmental milestones and remaining retarded.

Important Zoloft Birth Defect Injuries

Zoloft taken by pregnant woman may give birth to babies with one or more of the following birth defects:

• Congenital heart defects, including persistent pulmonary hypertension, pulmonary atresia, heart valve defect, pulmonary stenosis, transposition of great arteries, hypoplastic left heart syndrome, atrial and ventricular septal defect
• Congenital brain defects, cranial defects, under developed skull, mental retardation, language development problem, craniosynostosis, and autism
• Congenital neurological disorders
• Congenital face defects, such as lip, oral, and palate clefts
• Congenital limb defects, such as club foot, anus defect, rectum malformation
• Spina Bifida
• Neural tube and abdominal wall defects

About Zoloft

Our team of attorneys are currently reviewing potential Zoloft® lawsuits involving women who took these drugs during early pregnancy and whose children suffered adverse side effects, including heart defects and cleft lip/palate, among with others.

Manufactured by Pfizer, Inc., Zoloft^® is generically known as sertraline hydrochloride and is a drug prescribed to treat major depression in adults, as well as obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic and social anxiety disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder in both adults and children. Zoloft is classified as a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) drug, meaning that it selectively affects serotonin. Serotonin is one of many chemicals in the brain called neurotransmitters, which pass messages between nerve cells, and has been linked in various studiesto an increased risk of birth defects.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) initially placed SSRI antidepressants, including Zoloft, in its pregnancy Category C. This pregnancy category means that animal reproduction studies have shown an adverse effect on the fetus, but there have not yet been adequate and well-controlled studies in humans. Pregnancy categories measure the teratogenic effects a drug has on a fetus. Teratogenic means that a drug or other substance is capable of interfering with the development of a fetus, so there could be serious risks to the unborn baby of a woman taking Zoloft while pregnant.

Birth defects or conditions that may be associated with the use of Zoloft include:

• Abdominal wall defects (infant omphalocele)
• Anal atresia (complete or partial closure of the anus)
• Cleft lip and cleft palate
• Clubfoot (one or both feet turn downward and inward)
• Heart (cardiac) defects
• Skull defect (craniosynostosis)

Zoloft was approved by the FDA and introduced into the market in 1991. Prior to 2002, the drug was approved only for use in adults ages 18 and over. In 2002, the FDA approved Zoloft to treat severe obsessive compulsive disorder in children ages six and older.

The FDA issued a Public Health Advisory on Dec. 8, 2005, warning that use of certain antidepressants during the first trimester of pregnancy may be associated with an increased risk of birth defects. The advisory was based on U.S. and Swedish studies showing that exposure to certain antidepressants increased the risk of heart defects, including atrial and ventrical septal defects, conditions in which the wall between the right and left sides of the heart is not completely developed.

Citing a study by Christina Chambers of the University of California, San Diego, that was published in the New England Journal of Medicine, Health Canada issued a strong warning in March 2006 to pregnant women or women who were trying to become pregnant that antidepressant drugs like Zoloft could potentially pose serious risks to unborn or even nursing babies.

A 2007 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found a “significant association” between Zoloft and septal defects. A septal defect is a congenital defect that affects the structures of the heart. Septal defects can lead to the improper circulation of blood, making the heart work overtime. An atrial septal defect (ASD) is a hole in the wall between the heart’s two upper chambers. A hole in the wall between the two lower chambers is called a ventricular septal defect (VSD). Septal defects can be life threatening. According to the study, mothers who take Zoloft during pregnancy may double the risk of having an baby born with septal defects.

In another study published in the March 2010 issue of Pediatrics, researchers found a potential association between exposure to antidepressants in late pregnancy and a delay in normal motor development skills at six and 19 months of age. The same researchers, in a 2009 study published by British Medical Journal, found that women who were pregnant and taking certain antidepressants during the first trimester had an increased risk of giving birth to babies having various heart defects.

A recent study conducted by scientists at the University of Montreal and published online on May 31, 2010, in the Canadian Medical Association Journal suggests that women who take antidepressants like Zoloft during the first trimester of pregnancy are significantly more likely to suffer a miscarriage than women who do not take antidepressants.

The Archive of General Psychiatry published a report in July of 2011 linking SSRI antidepressants such as Zoloft to a potentially increased risk of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) in babies born to mothers who took these drugs during the first trimester of pregnancy. Performed by researchers at the Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program in Northern California, the population-based, case-control study compared a group of 298 children having varying degrees of autism and their mothers to another group of 1,507 randomly selected children and their mothers. Nearly 70 children from each group were exposed to antidepressants in the same class as Zoloft, and the researchers found a possible connection between mothers who took these drugs within a year before delivery and an increased the risk of their babies being born with ASDs. The highest risk was found to be among those whose mothers took these drugs during the first trimester.

For a Free Case Evaluation:

TOLL FREE: 1-800-632-1404

EMAIL: click here

FILL OUT THIS FORM:

NOTE: Our team of attorneys will review potential cases for all fifty states, including Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin and Wyoming.

Zoloft may cause birth defects when a woman takes it during pregnancy. If you or a loved one has given birth to a child with a birth defect and the mother took Zoloft during pregnancy, you may be entitled to financial compensation. The same is true for drugs Wellbutrin and Zyban.

Zoloft is prescribed for many purposes.  Sertraline is used to treat depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder (bothersome thoughts that won’t go away and the need to perform certain actions over and over), panic attacks (sudden, unexpected attacks of extreme fear and worry about these attacks), posttraumatic stress disorder and others. Regardless of the reason of prescription, women who take this drug may experience a greater than average risk of infant child birth defects, including but not limited to heart defects, cleft palate, cleft lip, skeletal deformations and more. If your child experienced such a horrific side effect, please call our team of Zoloft lawyers today for a free case evaluation on how we can help.

Were there omissions by Pfizer?

New Zoloft Birth Defect Class Action Says Pfizer May Have Misled Consumers

A Zoloft birth defect class action lawsuit filed in a California north district court on January 30, 2013 has accused Pfizer of breaching consumer trust and defrauding them of $30 billion by selling an antidepressant no better than a sugar pill. Laura A. Plumlee, the lead plaintiff, claiming that Zoloft does not offer any benefits and that she has brought this product liability class action “on behalf of consumers nationwide and in California, seeks to enjoin Pfizer’s continued unlawful conduct and recover damages for the millions of consumers who were tricked into purchasing a side effect-ridden drug that was, at best, marginally better than a sugar pill in treating depression.”

Plumlee took Pfizer’s Zoloft for a year without any benefit. Her doctor increased the dose by 8 times than originally prescribed to her, but without any advantage, and she finally switched to the generic version. She contends that a “vast majority” of clinical studies carried out in the past highlighted that Zoloft medication during trials did not improve the condition of patients suffering from depression and its effect was similar to that of a sugar pill.

The Zoloft class action lawsuits has also claimed that Pfizer used dishonest means, such as selective trial result publication and paid publications, to assert efficacy of Zoloft antidepressant. According to the petitioner, four of six clinical trials prior to the drug approval found Zoloft ineffective following design flaws, and the rest two declared it only marginally effective.

Zoloft Birth Defect Injury

Many research studies as well as post-marketing reports have highlighted congenital heart, brain, limb, abdominal, and face defects in children born to mothers treated with the antidepressant during their pregnancy. The FDA also issued a public warning in 2006, cautioning that the drug could result in women giving birth to babies with lasting pulmonary hypertension. According to a research paper made public by the US National Academy of Science, Zoloft and similar SSRIs taken during pregnancy may result in children missing post-natal development milestones.

A comprehensive study published in May 2012 by the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology attributed premature birth, seizure, and congenital defects of newborns to the side effects of Zoloft taken during pregnancy.  The October 2012 edition of Human Reproduction journal listed heart, brain, vertebra, abdominal, and lung birth defects, hypertension, neurobehavioral disorders, and limb defects in newborns as potential side effects of Zoloft therapy during pregnancy. The Times Magazine published a report in July 2011 that highlighted the likelihood of possible autism in newborns because of Zoloft use by expectant mothers.

More than 400 Zoloft birth defect lawsuits are pending for trial throughout the United States and the number is expected to go up as more parents and children with Zoloft injuries are coming forward. In January 2013, a Wisconsin couple filed a wrongful death lawsuit claiming that Zoloft side effects during pregnancy resulted in birth of their child with pulmonary dysplasia and brain malformations. The child died soon following these complications.

A similar Zoloft lawsuit filed by a Penn state couple claims that their daughter was born with heart problems and club foot due to Zoloft side effects. The mother took the drug during pregnancy, as she was unaware of its dangers. In June 2012, a 21-year-old Massachusetts woman sued Pfizer for her Zoloft injuries. She was born with atrial septal defects following the use of Zoloft by her mother during pregnancy.

Other Zoloft Side Effect Injury

A study funded by the National Institutes of Health and endorsed by the American College of Cardiology in April 2011 indicates that Zoloft side effects can cause fat deposition in carotid artery with the potential to disturb blood flow to the brain and neck. This may result in heart attacks and brain stroke. According to a research report published in the Frontiers in Evolutionary Psychology in April 2012, Zoloft-class SSRIs can cause miscarriage, hypertension, infertility, dyskinesia, seizures, respiratory arrest, cognitive disorder, stroke, bleeding problems, and brain neuron death among their side effects.

About Zoloft

Our team of attorneys are currently reviewing potential Zoloft® lawsuits involving women who took these drugs during early pregnancy and whose children suffered adverse side effects, including heart defects and cleft lip/palate, among with others.

Manufactured by Pfizer, Inc., Zoloft^® is generically known as sertraline hydrochloride and is a drug prescribed to treat major depression in adults, as well as obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic and social anxiety disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder in both adults and children. Zoloft is classified as a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) drug, meaning that it selectively affects serotonin. Serotonin is one of many chemicals in the brain called neurotransmitters, which pass messages between nerve cells, and has been linked in various studiesto an increased risk of birth defects.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) initially placed SSRI antidepressants, including Zoloft, in its pregnancy Category C. This pregnancy category means that animal reproduction studies have shown an adverse effect on the fetus, but there have not yet been adequate and well-controlled studies in humans. Pregnancy categories measure the teratogenic effects a drug has on a fetus. Teratogenic means that a drug or other substance is capable of interfering with the development of a fetus, so there could be serious risks to the unborn baby of a woman taking Zoloft while pregnant.

Birth defects or conditions that may be associated with the use of Zoloft include:

• Abdominal wall defects (infant omphalocele)
• Anal atresia (complete or partial closure of the anus)
• Cleft lip and cleft palate
• Clubfoot (one or both feet turn downward and inward)
• Heart (cardiac) defects
• Skull defect (craniosynostosis)

Zoloft was approved by the FDA and introduced into the market in 1991. Prior to 2002, the drug was approved only for use in adults ages 18 and over. In 2002, the FDA approved Zoloft to treat severe obsessive compulsive disorder in children ages six and older.

The FDA issued a Public Health Advisory on Dec. 8, 2005, warning that use of certain antidepressants during the first trimester of pregnancy may be associated with an increased risk of birth defects. The advisory was based on U.S. and Swedish studies showing that exposure to certain antidepressants increased the risk of heart defects, including atrial and ventrical septal defects, conditions in which the wall between the right and left sides of the heart is not completely developed.

Citing a study by Christina Chambers of the University of California, San Diego, that was published in the New England Journal of Medicine, Health Canada issued a strong warning in March 2006 to pregnant women or women who were trying to become pregnant that antidepressant drugs like Zoloft could potentially pose serious risks to unborn or even nursing babies.

A 2007 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found a “significant association” between Zoloft and septal defects. A septal defect is a congenital defect that affects the structures of the heart. Septal defects can lead to the improper circulation of blood, making the heart work overtime. An atrial septal defect (ASD) is a hole in the wall between the heart’s two upper chambers. A hole in the wall between the two lower chambers is called a ventricular septal defect (VSD). Septal defects can be life threatening. According to the study, mothers who take Zoloft during pregnancy may double the risk of having an baby born with septal defects.

In another study published in the March 2010 issue of Pediatrics, researchers found a potential association between exposure to antidepressants in late pregnancy and a delay in normal motor development skills at six and 19 months of age. The same researchers, in a 2009 study published by British Medical Journal, found that women who were pregnant and taking certain antidepressants during the first trimester had an increased risk of giving birth to babies having various heart defects.

A recent study conducted by scientists at the University of Montreal and published online on May 31, 2010, in the Canadian Medical Association Journal suggests that women who take antidepressants like Zoloft during the first trimester of pregnancy are significantly more likely to suffer a miscarriage than women who do not take antidepressants.

The Archive of General Psychiatry published a report in July of 2011 linking SSRI antidepressants such as Zoloft to a potentially increased risk of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) in babies born to mothers who took these drugs during the first trimester of pregnancy. Performed by researchers at the Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program in Northern California, the population-based, case-control study compared a group of 298 children having varying degrees of autism and their mothers to another group of 1,507 randomly selected children and their mothers. Nearly 70 children from each group were exposed to antidepressants in the same class as Zoloft, and the researchers found a possible connection between mothers who took these drugs within a year before delivery and an increased the risk of their babies being born with ASDs. The highest risk was found to be among those whose mothers took these drugs during the first trimester.

For a Free Case Evaluation:

TOLL FREE: 1-800-632-1404

EMAIL: click here

FILL OUT THIS FORM:

NOTE: Our team of attorneys will review potential cases for all fifty states, including Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin and Wyoming.

Zoloft may cause birth defects when a woman takes it during pregnancy. If you or a loved one has given birth to a child with a birth defect and the mother took Zoloft during pregnancy, you may be entitled to financial compensation. The same is true for drugs Wellbutrin and Zyban.

Zoloft is prescribed for many purposes.  Sertraline is used to treat depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder (bothersome thoughts that won’t go away and the need to perform certain actions over and over), panic attacks (sudden, unexpected attacks of extreme fear and worry about these attacks), posttraumatic stress disorder and others. Regardless of the reason of prescription, women who take this drug may experience a greater than average risk of infant child birth defects, including but not limited to heart defects, cleft palate, cleft lip, skeletal deformations and more. If your child experienced such a horrific side effect, please call our team of Zoloft lawyers today for a free case evaluation on how we can help.

Risks Associated With Wellbutrin

Wellbutrin Linked To Birth Defects in New Born, Health Disorders in Adult Users

The use of antidepressant drug Wellbutrin (generic name bupropion) during pregnancy could lead to birth of babies with congenital heart problems and other life-threatening defects. The drug manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline was first introduced in 1985, but was withdrawn within a year following increased number of complaints about its seizure side effects. The FDA permitted its reintroduction in 1989 following a review of the safety concerns. Researchers have now discovered that the popular antidepressant is a cause of concern for pregnant women with Wellbutrin side effects leading to high incidences of child birth defects. The drug also causes a number of adverse conditions in adults impacting their physical and psychological health.

Wellbutrin Birth Defects: Research Studies

According to findings of a medical study published in the American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology in April 2010, Wellbutrin side effects in pregnant women cause birth of babies with malformations and cardiovascular deformities. The Wellbutrin birth defect research carried on in collaboration with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention examined more than 12,000 children born between October 1997 and January 2005.

Researchers discovered that women who took Wellbutrin antidepressant drug during their pregnancy were more likely to have babies with left outflow tract defect. Such type of congenital heart defect prevents blood flow to other organs from left heart chambers leading to many other health problems. Newborns with such disorder have to undergo critical arterial surgeries. The risk, according to the study, is more than double compared to those without the drug therapy during their pregnancy.

The study discovered that at least 6,000 of children studied had one or more of types of cardiac birth defects while more than 5,000 showed up with at least one type of noncardiac birth defects. The study linked the following birth defects to Wellbutrin side effects.

• Cardiovascular problems
• Cranial deformities
• Persistent pulmonary hypertension
• Abdominal malformations

In 2006, the FDA warned that the risk of persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn (PPHN) could increase because of fetal exposure to Wellbutrin-class antidepressants. PPHN seriously impact heart condition of newborns and blood circulation bypassing lungs cause oxygen shortage in the body. The public warning followed a similar report by the New England Journal of Medicine that claimed six-fold PPHN risk caused by antidepressant drugs taken after the twentieth week of pregnancy.

The Bupropion Pregnancy Registry created by Wellbutrin producer GlaxoSmithKline also indicates presence association between the drug and infant birth defects. A 2008 meta-analysis of its showed 3.6 percent of 675 babies born to women taking Wellburtin during the first pregnancy trimester had heart and other birth defects. The American Journal of Nursing also published a similar study in 2010 that linked Wellburtin-class antidepressants to atrial and ventricular septal problems in newborns.

Most Reported Wellbutrin Birth Defects

• Persistent pulmonary hypertension
• Cardiac defects in newborns
• Omphalocele and other abdominal deformities
• Neural tube birth problem
• Left outflow tract defect
• Cranial and related disorders
• Limb defects
• Urethra deformities
• Cleft lip and palate

Other Wellbutrin Side Effects

Wellbutrin is in the FDA list of serotonergic psychiatric medications that may cause serious central nervous system toxicity following drug interactions. The list was published in July 2011. The FDA requires Wellburtin to carry a black box warning for causing suicidal behavior.

In October 2012, the FDA recalled Budeprion XL, a generic Wellbutrin version by Teva Pharmaceuticals, after a study showed that the drug did not subdue depression in users. Researchers examined 24 patients treated with Budeprion therapy and found that Wellbutrin is not released into the bloodstream as expected.

GlaxoSmithKline agreed to pay $3 billion to settle illegal marketing charges against it in July 2012. Four of its employees filed a pharmaceutical whistleblower lawsuit over illegal promotion of Wellburtin, Paxil, and Avandia for purposes other than approved by the FDA. The lawsuit claimed that GlaxoSmithKline had promoted Wellbutrin for treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity, sexual dysfunction, addiction, and weight loss without FDA approval.

About Zoloft

Our team of attorneys are currently reviewing potential Zoloft® lawsuits involving women who took these drugs during early pregnancy and whose children suffered adverse side effects, including heart defects and cleft lip/palate, among with others.

Manufactured by Pfizer, Inc., Zoloft^® is generically known as sertraline hydrochloride and is a drug prescribed to treat major depression in adults, as well as obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic and social anxiety disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder in both adults and children. Zoloft is classified as a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) drug, meaning that it selectively affects serotonin. Serotonin is one of many chemicals in the brain called neurotransmitters, which pass messages between nerve cells, and has been linked in various studiesto an increased risk of birth defects.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) initially placed SSRI antidepressants, including Zoloft, in its pregnancy Category C. This pregnancy category means that animal reproduction studies have shown an adverse effect on the fetus, but there have not yet been adequate and well-controlled studies in humans. Pregnancy categories measure the teratogenic effects a drug has on a fetus. Teratogenic means that a drug or other substance is capable of interfering with the development of a fetus, so there could be serious risks to the unborn baby of a woman taking Zoloft while pregnant.

Birth defects or conditions that may be associated with the use of Zoloft include:

• Abdominal wall defects (infant omphalocele)
• Anal atresia (complete or partial closure of the anus)
• Cleft lip and cleft palate
• Clubfoot (one or both feet turn downward and inward)
• Heart (cardiac) defects
• Skull defect (craniosynostosis)

Zoloft was approved by the FDA and introduced into the market in 1991. Prior to 2002, the drug was approved only for use in adults ages 18 and over. In 2002, the FDA approved Zoloft to treat severe obsessive compulsive disorder in children ages six and older.

The FDA issued a Public Health Advisory on Dec. 8, 2005, warning that use of certain antidepressants during the first trimester of pregnancy may be associated with an increased risk of birth defects. The advisory was based on U.S. and Swedish studies showing that exposure to certain antidepressants increased the risk of heart defects, including atrial and ventrical septal defects, conditions in which the wall between the right and left sides of the heart is not completely developed.

Citing a study by Christina Chambers of the University of California, San Diego, that was published in the New England Journal of Medicine, Health Canada issued a strong warning in March 2006 to pregnant women or women who were trying to become pregnant that antidepressant drugs like Zoloft could potentially pose serious risks to unborn or even nursing babies.

A 2007 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found a “significant association” between Zoloft and septal defects. A septal defect is a congenital defect that affects the structures of the heart. Septal defects can lead to the improper circulation of blood, making the heart work overtime. An atrial septal defect (ASD) is a hole in the wall between the heart’s two upper chambers. A hole in the wall between the two lower chambers is called a ventricular septal defect (VSD). Septal defects can be life threatening. According to the study, mothers who take Zoloft during pregnancy may double the risk of having an baby born with septal defects.

In another study published in the March 2010 issue of Pediatrics, researchers found a potential association between exposure to antidepressants in late pregnancy and a delay in normal motor development skills at six and 19 months of age. The same researchers, in a 2009 study published by British Medical Journal, found that women who were pregnant and taking certain antidepressants during the first trimester had an increased risk of giving birth to babies having various heart defects.

A recent study conducted by scientists at the University of Montreal and published online on May 31, 2010, in the Canadian Medical Association Journal suggests that women who take antidepressants like Zoloft during the first trimester of pregnancy are significantly more likely to suffer a miscarriage than women who do not take antidepressants.

The Archive of General Psychiatry published a report in July of 2011 linking SSRI antidepressants such as Zoloft to a potentially increased risk of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) in babies born to mothers who took these drugs during the first trimester of pregnancy. Performed by researchers at the Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program in Northern California, the population-based, case-control study compared a group of 298 children having varying degrees of autism and their mothers to another group of 1,507 randomly selected children and their mothers. Nearly 70 children from each group were exposed to antidepressants in the same class as Zoloft, and the researchers found a possible connection between mothers who took these drugs within a year before delivery and an increased the risk of their babies being born with ASDs. The highest risk was found to be among those whose mothers took these drugs during the first trimester.

For a Free Case Evaluation:

TOLL FREE: 1-800-632-1404

EMAIL: click here

FILL OUT THIS FORM:

NOTE: Our team of attorneys will review potential cases for all fifty states, including Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin and Wyoming.

Zoloft may cause birth defects when a woman takes it during pregnancy. If you or a loved one has given birth to a child with a birth defect and the mother took Zoloft during pregnancy, you may be entitled to financial compensation.

Zoloft is prescribed for many purposes.  Sertraline is used to treat depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder (bothersome thoughts that won’t go away and the need to perform certain actions over and over), panic attacks (sudden, unexpected attacks of extreme fear and worry about these attacks), posttraumatic stress disorder and others. Regardless of the reason of prescription, women who take this drug may experience a greater than average risk of infant child birth defects, including but not limited to heart defects, cleft palate, cleft lip, skeletal deformations and more. If your child experienced such a horrific side effect, please call our team of Zoloft lawyers today for a free case evaluation on how we can help.

Risks Associated With Zoloft

Zoloft Birth Injury Risks Outweigh Potential Benefits

Antidepressant Zoloft has been linked to potentially life-threatening birth defects in babies and a number of side effects, including suicidal tendency, in adults. The selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor is produced by Pfizer and widely used to treat obsessive-compulsive disorders, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress. However, its side effects highlighted by independent researches, Zoloft lawsuits, and post-marketing studies outweigh the drug benefits. Zoloft side effects during pregnancy lead to malformations and lung, heart, cranial, and abdominal defects in newborns. Adults are likely to suffer from liver impairment, sexual dysfunction, neurological disorders, colitis, and withdrawal syndrome due to Zoloft side effects.

Zoloft Side Effect Studies

Pfizer introduced Zoloft in 1991 and the drug became the highest selling SSRI antidepressant in 2007. In the last five years, a number of studies have been published linking the drug to an array of adverse injuries in both babies born to mothers took the drug during pregnancy and adults. Zoloft side effects first came to public notice in 1999 after one of the shooters accused for the Columbine High School massacre was found to be on the drug. A spate of reports, Zoloft side effect complaints, independent studies, and post-marketing surveys, published between 2002 and 2006 forced the FDA to warn consumers about potential injuries associated with the drug.

A May 2012 report in the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology claimed that Zoloft antidepressant could cause seizers and birth defects. According to the study carried on by the Tennessee Medicaid, the drug could lead to five-fold increase in the risk of life-threatening health problems in newborns if taken during or after the third trimester of pregnancy.

Another meta-analysis published in the Human Reproduction journal in October 2012 linked Zoloft side effects to pregnancy complications, high risk of miscarriage, and neonatal disorders. A review of more than 100 studies, the report highlighted neurobehavioral abnormalities and imperfections in heart, vertebra, skull, abdominal, and lungs of newly born babies. According to findings by scholars at Ontario Western University published in the Neurology medical journal, Zoloft and similar SSRIs can also cause serious brain hemorrhage.

According to the US National Academy of Science, children born to mothers who take Zoloft during pregnancy are at greater risk of missing developmental milestones. The American College of Cardiology has warned about potential risk of heart attack in adults caused by the antidepressant drug. Autism and congenital heart problems in children could be result of Zoloft side effects during pregnancy, according a Times Magazine report published in July 2011.

Zoloft Birth Defects in Newborn Babies

• Cardiovascular problems and congenital heart defect
•  Neural tube defect
• Spina bifida
• Neo behavioral syndrome
• Cranial defect and undeveloped skull
• Autism, pulmonary hypertension, heart valve disorders
• Internal and external oral defects
• Rectum, anus, and abdominal wall malformation

Zoloft Side Effects in Adults

• Serious brain hemorrhage
• Ejaculation difficulties
• Swelling of female sexual organs
• Suicidal behavior
• Atherosclerosis in men
• Neurological disorders, such as dizziness, insomnia, tremor, etc.
• Gastrointestinal problems
• Liver impairment and hepatitis symptoms
• Genitourinary disorders, such as decreased libido and sexual dysfunction
• Endocrine side effects, such as galactorrhea
• Hyponatremia
• Upper respiratory tract infection

Zoloft Side Effect Lawsuits

More than 400 Zoloft birth defect lawsuits have been filed in various state and federal courts across the United States. The plaintiffs, both parents and children born with birth defects, have sought to fix liability on Pfizer for manufacturing and marketing drugs that can lead to life-threatening side effects and withholding information about its safety concerns. Zoloft litigations focus on breach of consumer trust, negligence, and product liability on the part of the manufacturer. The court of Judge Cynthia M. Rufe of Pennsylvania east district has been selected for the consolidation of all Zoloft lawsuits under the MDL provisions.

The Problem

Our firm is offering free nationwide case evaluations to families whose children were diagnosed with medical conditions at birth or shortly therafter when the mother ingested Zoloft during pregnancy. Specific birth defects include cardiac malformations (ASD, VSD, Left Hypoplastic Heart Syndrome, coarctation of the aorta, Tricuspid or Pulmonary Atresia, Pulmonary Stenosis, transposition of the great vessels or any other heart defect), neural tube defect, craniosynostosis, cleft lip, cleft palate, skeletal deformations, and club foot.

About Zoloft

Our team of attorneys are currently reviewing potential Zoloft® lawsuits involving women who took these drugs during early pregnancy and whose children suffered adverse side effects, including heart defects and cleft lip/palate, among with others.

Manufactured by Pfizer, Inc., Zoloft^® is generically known as sertraline hydrochloride and is a drug prescribed to treat major depression in adults, as well as obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic and social anxiety disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder in both adults and children. Zoloft is classified as a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) drug, meaning that it selectively affects serotonin. Serotonin is one of many chemicals in the brain called neurotransmitters, which pass messages between nerve cells, and has been linked in various studiesto an increased risk of birth defects.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) initially placed SSRI antidepressants, including Zoloft, in its pregnancy Category C. This pregnancy category means that animal reproduction studies have shown an adverse effect on the fetus, but there have not yet been adequate and well-controlled studies in humans. Pregnancy categories measure the teratogenic effects a drug has on a fetus. Teratogenic means that a drug or other substance is capable of interfering with the development of a fetus, so there could be serious risks to the unborn baby of a woman taking Zoloft while pregnant.

Birth defects or conditions that may be associated with the use of Zoloft include:

• Abdominal wall defects (infant omphalocele)
• Anal atresia (complete or partial closure of the anus)
• Cleft lip and cleft palate
• Clubfoot (one or both feet turn downward and inward)
• Heart (cardiac) defects
• Skull defect (craniosynostosis)

Zoloft was approved by the FDA and introduced into the market in 1991. Prior to 2002, the drug was approved only for use in adults ages 18 and over. In 2002, the FDA approved Zoloft to treat severe obsessive compulsive disorder in children ages six and older.

The FDA issued a Public Health Advisory on Dec. 8, 2005, warning that use of certain antidepressants during the first trimester of pregnancy may be associated with an increased risk of birth defects. The advisory was based on U.S. and Swedish studies showing that exposure to certain antidepressants increased the risk of heart defects, including atrial and ventrical septal defects, conditions in which the wall between the right and left sides of the heart is not completely developed.

Citing a study by Christina Chambers of the University of California, San Diego, that was published in the New England Journal of Medicine, Health Canada issued a strong warning in March 2006 to pregnant women or women who were trying to become pregnant that antidepressant drugs like Zoloft could potentially pose serious risks to unborn or even nursing babies.

A 2007 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found a “significant association” between Zoloft and septal defects. A septal defect is a congenital defect that affects the structures of the heart. Septal defects can lead to the improper circulation of blood, making the heart work overtime. An atrial septal defect (ASD) is a hole in the wall between the heart’s two upper chambers. A hole in the wall between the two lower chambers is called a ventricular septal defect (VSD). Septal defects can be life threatening. According to the study, mothers who take Zoloft during pregnancy may double the risk of having an baby born with septal defects.

In another study published in the March 2010 issue of Pediatrics, researchers found a potential association between exposure to antidepressants in late pregnancy and a delay in normal motor development skills at six and 19 months of age. The same researchers, in a 2009 study published by British Medical Journal, found that women who were pregnant and taking certain antidepressants during the first trimester had an increased risk of giving birth to babies having various heart defects.

A recent study conducted by scientists at the University of Montreal and published online on May 31, 2010, in the Canadian Medical Association Journal suggests that women who take antidepressants like Zoloft during the first trimester of pregnancy are significantly more likely to suffer a miscarriage than women who do not take antidepressants.

The Archive of General Psychiatry published a report in July of 2011 linking SSRI antidepressants such as Zoloft to a potentially increased risk of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) in babies born to mothers who took these drugs during the first trimester of pregnancy. Performed by researchers at the Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program in Northern California, the population-based, case-control study compared a group of 298 children having varying degrees of autism and their mothers to another group of 1,507 randomly selected children and their mothers. Nearly 70 children from each group were exposed to antidepressants in the same class as Zoloft, and the researchers found a possible connection between mothers who took these drugs within a year before delivery and an increased the risk of their babies being born with ASDs. The highest risk was found to be among those whose mothers took these drugs during the first trimester.

For a Free Case Evaluation:

TOLL FREE: 1-800-632-1404

EMAIL: click here

FILL OUT THIS FORM:

NOTE: Our team of attorneys will review potential cases for all fifty states, including Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin and Wyoming.

Zoloft may cause birth defects when a woman takes it during pregnancy. If you or a loved one has given birth to a child with a birth defect and the mother took Zoloft during pregnancy, you may be entitled to financial compensation.

Zoloft is prescribed for many purposes.  Sertraline is used to treat depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder (bothersome thoughts that won’t go away and the need to perform certain actions over and over), panic attacks (sudden, unexpected attacks of extreme fear and worry about these attacks), posttraumatic stress disorder and others. Regardless of the reason of prescription, women who take this drug may experience a greater than average risk of infant child birth defects, including but not limited to heart defects, cleft palate, cleft lip, skeletal deformations and more. If your child experienced such a horrific side effect, please call our team of Zoloft lawyers today for a free case evaluation on how we can help.

Lawsuits Filed Allege Profits Over Safety

Zoloft Birth Defect Injury Lawsuits Accuse Pfizer of Ignoring Side Effects for Profits

Pfizer faces more than 300 Zoloft birth defect injury lawsuits alleging that it ignored information on drug side effects and continued to market the SSRI antidepressant despite reports of serious birth defect injuries. The drug was introduced in 1991 and there was no independent scrutiny on its safety until 1999 when one of the two Columbine High School massacre preceptors was found to be on the drug for a long time. The FDA received a spate of reports between 2002 and 2006 alleging birth deformities, suicidal tendencies, and cardiovascular problems in newly born babies caused by Zoloft side effects.

In 2007, the New England Journal of Medicine published a research finding disclosing serious Zoloft side effects for pregnant women and their children. This led to filing of Zoloft birth defect injuries lawsuits and more studies highlighting life-threatening risks. The number of Zoloft birth defect lawsuits zoomed in 2011 and 2012 as a large number of users came forward to sue Pfizer following disclosure of drug adverse effects.

Plaintiffs of Zoloft Birth Defect Injuries Lawsuits

Zoloft birth defect injuries lawsuits filed against Pfizer mostly concentrate on seeking damages citing product liability, breach of trust, fraud, and negligence. In most of the lawsuits, parents or mothers of children born with deformities have been named as plaintiffs. They claim that the manufacturer failed to disclose safety issues associated with the drug leading to its consumption by expectant mothers and birth of children with congenital defects.

A number of Zoloft birth defect injuries lawsuits have also been filed by children born with birth defects due to the drug side effects. Their claim against Pfizer focuses on the point that failure of the drug maker to divulge the side effects, restricting its use by pregnant women, is responsible for the birth deformities of the plaintiffs. As more such children living with malformations are turning adults, the number of birth defect lawsuits is bound to rise in the coming years.

Zoloft Birth Defect Injury Lawsuits

In October 2011, an Ohio couple filed a birth defect lawsuit in a Cuyahoga county court blaming Pfizer and Ohio-based pharmaceutical supplier Cardinal Health for the death of their newly born son. The mother took Zoloft during pregnancy and her son was born with a neural tube defect, also called anencephaly. The newly born was without most part of his brain. The Zoloft lawsuit claimed there was no pregnancy-related anencephaly warning from the manufacturer and this resulted in the deformities and death of the child. A similar lawsuit filed in a New York court by a couple from Missouri within days of the former claimed that Zoloft side defects led to death of their newly born baby with heart defects.

The parents of eight children with congenital birth defects filed a lawsuit in the St. Clair County Circuit Court in November 2011 seeking damages from Pfizer over Zoloft birth defect injuries. They claimed that use of Zoloft by mothers during pregnancy was responsible for deformities in children and the drug maker was responsible for it as the drug contained no warning on birth defects in newly born babies.

A 20-year-old woman born with Zoloft birth defect injuries filed lawsuits in December 2011 alleging that though Pfizer was aware of the drug side effects, it did not inform consumers about the same. The lawsuit was filed in a St. Clair County by Angela Rife. She has a cleft palate and cleft lip attributed to Zoloft use by her mother during pregnancy. A week later (January 6th, 2012), another 20-year-man from Texas filed a similar birth defect injury lawsuit in an Eastern Missouri federal court. He had congenital club feet that required him to undergo multiple surgeries.

In February 2012, a group of mothers initiated a Zoloft class action against Pfizer holding the antidepressant drug responsible for birth deformities in children born to them. The lawsuit alleged that the manufacturer did not carry out adequate research to establish safety of the drug and it misled the consumers on Zoloft birth defect injuries.

A 21 year-old woman from Massachusetts sued Pfizer in June 2012 blaming it for her atrial septal birth defects. The plaintiff claimed that her mother took Zoloft during pregnancy and its side effects caused congenital heart defect in her. According to the lawsuit, Pfizer failed to adequately inform the plaintiff’s mother or doctor about Zoloft birth defect injury side effects.

In September 2012, a federal lawsuit filed by a Pennsylvania couple complained that Zoloft side effects resulted in the birth of their daughter with heart defects and clubfeet. The mother used the antidepressant during pregnancy, being unaware of its side effects, which resulted in malformations in the newly born child.

MDL Consolidation

About 245 federal Zoloft birth defect lawsuits have been filed across the United States. Over 70 lawsuits are also awaiting trial in different state courts. In April 2012, the federal MDL panel centralized all Zoloft lawsuits at the court of Pennsylvania Eastern District Judge Cynthia M. Rufe. As the number of lawsuits continues to increase, the judge outlined Preliminary Discovery Plan and the procedure to be followed in the deciding the trial dates on October 17.

The Problem

Our firm is offering free nationwide case evaluations to families whose children were diagnosed with medical conditions at birth or shortly therafter when the mother ingested Zoloft during pregnancy. Specific birth defects include cardiac malformations (ASD, VSD, Left Hypoplastic Heart Syndrome, coarctation of the aorta, Tricuspid or Pulmonary Atresia, Pulmonary Stenosis, transposition of the great vessels or any other heart defect), neural tube defect, craniosynostosis, cleft lip, cleft palate, skeletal deformations, and club foot.

About Zoloft

Our team of attorneys are currently reviewing potential Zoloft® lawsuits involving women who took these drugs during early pregnancy and whose children suffered adverse side effects, including heart defects and cleft lip/palate, among with others.

Manufactured by Pfizer, Inc., Zoloft^® is generically known as sertraline hydrochloride and is a drug prescribed to treat major depression in adults, as well as obsessive-compulsive disorder, panic and social anxiety disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder in both adults and children. Zoloft is classified as a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) drug, meaning that it selectively affects serotonin. Serotonin is one of many chemicals in the brain called neurotransmitters, which pass messages between nerve cells, and has been linked in various studiesto an increased risk of birth defects.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) initially placed SSRI antidepressants, including Zoloft, in its pregnancy Category C. This pregnancy category means that animal reproduction studies have shown an adverse effect on the fetus, but there have not yet been adequate and well-controlled studies in humans. Pregnancy categories measure the teratogenic effects a drug has on a fetus. Teratogenic means that a drug or other substance is capable of interfering with the development of a fetus, so there could be serious risks to the unborn baby of a woman taking Zoloft while pregnant.

Birth defects or conditions that may be associated with the use of Zoloft include:

• Abdominal wall defects (infant omphalocele)
• Anal atresia (complete or partial closure of the anus)
• Cleft lip and cleft palate
• Clubfoot (one or both feet turn downward and inward)
• Heart (cardiac) defects
• Skull defect (craniosynostosis)

Zoloft was approved by the FDA and introduced into the market in 1991. Prior to 2002, the drug was approved only for use in adults ages 18 and over. In 2002, the FDA approved Zoloft to treat severe obsessive compulsive disorder in children ages six and older.

The FDA issued a Public Health Advisory on Dec. 8, 2005, warning that use of certain antidepressants during the first trimester of pregnancy may be associated with an increased risk of birth defects. The advisory was based on U.S. and Swedish studies showing that exposure to certain antidepressants increased the risk of heart defects, including atrial and ventrical septal defects, conditions in which the wall between the right and left sides of the heart is not completely developed.

Citing a study by Christina Chambers of the University of California, San Diego, that was published in the New England Journal of Medicine, Health Canada issued a strong warning in March 2006 to pregnant women or women who were trying to become pregnant that antidepressant drugs like Zoloft could potentially pose serious risks to unborn or even nursing babies.

A 2007 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found a “significant association” between Zoloft and septal defects. A septal defect is a congenital defect that affects the structures of the heart. Septal defects can lead to the improper circulation of blood, making the heart work overtime. An atrial septal defect (ASD) is a hole in the wall between the heart’s two upper chambers. A hole in the wall between the two lower chambers is called a ventricular septal defect (VSD). Septal defects can be life threatening. According to the study, mothers who take Zoloft during pregnancy may double the risk of having an baby born with septal defects.

In another study published in the March 2010 issue of Pediatrics, researchers found a potential association between exposure to antidepressants in late pregnancy and a delay in normal motor development skills at six and 19 months of age. The same researchers, in a 2009 study published by British Medical Journal, found that women who were pregnant and taking certain antidepressants during the first trimester had an increased risk of giving birth to babies having various heart defects.

A recent study conducted by scientists at the University of Montreal and published online on May 31, 2010, in the Canadian Medical Association Journal suggests that women who take antidepressants like Zoloft during the first trimester of pregnancy are significantly more likely to suffer a miscarriage than women who do not take antidepressants.

The Archive of General Psychiatry published a report in July of 2011 linking SSRI antidepressants such as Zoloft to a potentially increased risk of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) in babies born to mothers who took these drugs during the first trimester of pregnancy. Performed by researchers at the Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program in Northern California, the population-based, case-control study compared a group of 298 children having varying degrees of autism and their mothers to another group of 1,507 randomly selected children and their mothers. Nearly 70 children from each group were exposed to antidepressants in the same class as Zoloft, and the researchers found a possible connection between mothers who took these drugs within a year before delivery and an increased the risk of their babies being born with ASDs. The highest risk was found to be among those whose mothers took these drugs during the first trimester.

For a Free Case Evaluation:

TOLL FREE: 1-800-632-1404

EMAIL: click here

FILL OUT THIS FORM:

NOTE: Our team of attorneys will review potential cases for all fifty states, including Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin and Wyoming.