Three Months

Iowa City, IAHis name is Manie and he was born with a rare heart defect that his mother blames on taking Paxil during the first three months of her pregnancy. Paxil side effects are alleged to pose a risk for grievous birth defects in children—including rare heart defects. The author of a blog post, Julie Edgington, on August 11, 2009, was commenting about her son's health issues.

"Manie had to have a hole ripped into his heart shortly after birth to save his life. At eight days old he had a 12hr.[sic] open heart surgery."

By August 2009, when Manie was five, the boy was suffering from a leaky valve stemming, his mother wrote, from the open-heart surgery. Julie wrote at the time that among the numerous medications her son was required to take was a drug to control high blood pressure—a medication he had been required to take since he was a week old.

Among the Paxil side effects affecting Manie at the time was severe acid reflux. The condition, according to his mother, caused extensive damage to the boy's teeth and throat. Stomach cramps are another issue that occurred multiple times during the day and night. "During the night he not only wakes from stomach cramps, he often wakes screaming and crying because of arm and leg cramps," his mother wrote.

Then there were the "collaterals," which Julie described as vessels growing off both sides of the heart. "These collaterals attach to the arteries that go to his lungs. Manie has had to have several coils placed into the collaterals to plug them up."

The Bitter Pill blog was reporting in November of that year that Manie's health problems were hitting the family hard financially. Manie's father Russell was seeking employment at the time, while Manie's health issues required the full attention of his mother, no longer able to work due to the needs of her son. The family was reported to be selling off some of their artwork on eBay to raise funds.

It was reported that the family had a Paxil lawsuit pending against manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline, alleging Paxil heart defects.

All this, it is alleged, because Julie was prescribed Paxil during the first three months of her pregnancy, and wound up contending with health issues involving her son that no parent or child should be made to suffer through.

The last word goes to Julie, who wrote on Manie's Facebook page March 17. It was her brave boy's 6th birthday…

"On this very day 6 years ago we waited 12 long hours for Manie to come out of his open heart surgery. Manie I am so lucky to be your mom, I love you so much you are so strong and wonderful. The world is a much better place because you are here. Manie you are my hero."