Joanna Szabo  |  August 28, 2015

Category: Legal News

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Lexapro birth defectsAfter children of mothers who used Lexapro or Celexa were born with birth defects, Forest Pharmaceuticals Inc. has been confronted with twelve different lawsuits. The lawsuits claim that the infants of these mothers were born with various Lexapro birth defects, such as congenital heart defects and other bodily injuries.

Forest Pharmaceuticals was in control of Lexapro and Celexa throughout development, testing, and marketing of the two drugs, which have the same active ingredient and makes them highly similar. Lexapro (escitalopram) and Celexa (citalopram) belong to a class of drugs called “selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors,” also known as SSRIs.

Lexapro was first approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2002 for the treatment of major depression.

Lexapro Birth Defect Allegations

Plaintiffs in these Lexapro lawsuits allege that Forest Pharmaceuticals knew through a series of pre- and post-market studies that their drug, Lexapro, was linked with an increased risk of birth defects in babies whose mothers had taken Lexapro during pregnancy, and also knew that the risk was significant. Plaintiffs further allege that, despite the company’s knowledge of this increased risk, Forest Pharmaceuticals continued to aggressively and actively promote the use of Lexapro by women at child-bearing age, including equally aggressive marketing to pregnant women.

Lexapro lawsuits allege that Forest Pharmaceuticals had a duty to update the warning information about their drug to both consumers and the medical community to ensure that all necessary parties had accurate and adequate information about the drug. Plaintiffs claim that Forest either knew or should have known about the increased risk of SSRI birth defects, and failed to include this information in an updated label as required by the FDA in such cases.

The official FDA stance on drug warnings is that drug companies are required to issue stronger warnings whenever there exists reasonable evidence of a link between a serious risk and their drug. These regulations state specifically that the link between the potential risk and the drug need not be proven before issuing the new warnings.

The twelve Lexapro lawsuits against Forest Pharmaceuticals allege that the drug company continues to represent their products, Lexapro and Celexa, as safe to use for pregnant women, despite the evidence of potential risk. The lack of updated warnings is misleading for consumers and physicians as to the safety of the drugs, and is done despite the company’s knowledge of the potential Lexapro birth defects.

These plaintiffs took Lexapro in the amounts and for the period of time prescribed by their physicians. The birth defects lawsuits allege that, had these mothers been adequately warned of the potential Lexapro birth defects, they would not have taken the drug.

If you or someone you know has been negatively affected by side effects of Lexapro or Celexa, including Lexapro birth defects or Celexa birth defects, you may be able to file a lawsuit.

Do YOU have a legal claim? Fill out the form on this page now for a free, immediate, and confidential case evaluation. The birth defect attorneys who work with Top Class Actions will contact you if you qualify to let you know if an individual lawsuit or class action lawsuit is best for you. [In general, birth defect lawsuits are filed individually by each plaintiff and are not class actions.] Hurry — statutes of limitations may apply.

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If you or a loved one took Zoloft, Prozac, Lexapro, Effexor, Celexa, Cymbalta or Depakote during pregnancy and gave birth to a child with a congenital defect, you may have a legal claim against the drug’s manufacturer. Find out if you qualify to pursue compensation for your child’s medical expenses, pain and suffering, and other damages by filling out the form below now.

An attorney will contact you if you qualify to discuss the details of your potential case.

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Please note: Top Class Actions is not a settlement administrator or law firm. Top Class Actions is a legal news source that reports on class action lawsuits, class action settlements, drug injury lawsuits and product liability lawsuits. Top Class Actions does not process claims and we cannot advise you on the status of any class action settlement claim. You must contact the settlement administrator or your attorney for any updates regarding your claim status, claim form or questions about when payments are expected to be mailed out.