Lexapro One of Many Medications Cited for Links to Newborn Birth Defects

Washington, D.C.Lexapro, a popular antidepressant sold around the world, is one of many drugs being linked to serious newborn birth defects in a recent report from the online news provider News Inferno.

Lexapro belongs to a subcategory of antidepressants known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), which block the absorption of the hormone serotonin by nerve cells in the brain.

Despite the positive implications of these medications, their usage by pregnant women has been shown to increase the risk of certain birth defects, including persistent pulmonary hypertension in the newborn, as well as cardiac defects, craniosynostosis, infant omphalocele, club foot and anal atresia, according to News Inferno.

A recent study published by the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology noted that the popular SSRI Wellbutrin (Bupropion) also increased the risk of cardiac defects in a newborn child.

The study examined roughly 12,700 babies born between 1997 and 2004, of which more than 6,800 suffered from heart defects. A sizable portion of these mothers were found to have used the SSRI medication in the month prior to their pregnancy or during their first trimester.