Lexapro Birth Defects: Talk about Navel-Gazing…

Washington, DCBirth defects are not only tragic, they remain a source of guilt for the parent—and there are always a million questions. What could I have done to prevent this? Had I done something differently, could the tragedy have been avoided? Worse still, is the gnawing suspicion that the SSRI antidepressant you ingested while pregnant might have led to Lexapro birth defects.

And what are some of those defects?

Omphalocele, for one. What is that? Think of it as a type of hernia, only it's affecting your baby, rather than you. And the sight of an omphalocele is discomforting: the intestine, or some other internal organ belonging to the infant, protruding out through the baby's navel.

Lexapro PPH is another. Persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn (often written today as PPHN) is a serious defect impacting the heart or lung. Many infants do not survive. Others have to wage a heartfelt battle at birth just to breathe. Still others will appear fine, and then succumb some months down the road. Five years ago the federal health care agency, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), warned in a Public Health Advisory that SSRI antidepressants were six times more likely to trigger PPHN in infants than those of mothers who did not use SSRI drugs such as Lexapro while pregnant.

There is no question that SSRI antidepressants serve a useful purpose for many patients, most of whom could not function without such medicinal intervention. However, research in Denmark has found that use of Lexapro during the first trimester of a pregnancy could increase the risk of Lexapro birth defects, especially those of the heart. And while acknowledging the ongoing debate surrounding the wisdom of stopping SSRI drugs such as Lexapro to benefit the child v. continuing Lexapro to benefit the mother, critics wonder why such risks may not have been taken into account at the time such drugs were first introduced to the market.

Many a Lexapro lawsuit has been filed, alleging newborn birth defects. In an unrelated issue, a report from CompaniesandMarkets.com from June 23 noted that psychiatrists generally hold Lexapro as the leading treatment for depression globally. However, that position may soon be in jeopardy as a host of generics are poised to flood the marketplace.