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Since its introduction into the pharmaceutical market in 1983, Depakote has become a go-to epilepsy treatment. Millions of individuals are taking prescription Depakote to help manage seizure conditions.
However, the FDA has recently taken action to warn consumers and doctors about the dangers of prescribing Depakote to pregnant women. As a result of the alleged inadequacies of the Depakote drug warning label concerning the risks of Depakote birth defects, the drug’s creator Abbott Laboratories is facing Depakote birth defects lawsuits.
Depakote Birth Defects and Side Effects
Depakote (valproic acid) is a type of anticonvulsant drug prescribed to treat epilepsy, migraines, bipolar disorder, ADHD, and chorea. However, according to recent drug studies and reports, women who take Depakote while pregnant, especially during the first trimester, are at an increased risk of giving birth to children with birth defects.
Some potential Depakote birth defects include:
- Brain defects
- Decreased IQ
- Atrial septal defect
- Cleft lip
- Cleft palate
- Spina bifida
- Cardiovascular defects
In 2006, one of the first Depakote studies reported that about 20 percent of women taking Depakote gave birth to a child with birth defects. In the same year, the FDA required the drug’s manufacturer to add a black-box warning on the Depakote packaging to caution women of the possible Depakote side effects.
A few years later, the agency specifically warned about the possibility of neural tube defects, heart defects, and craniofacial defects a child may develop in-utero if a mother takes Depakote.
In 2010, the New England Journal of Medicine published a study conducted by European researchers that found taking Depakote during pregnancy can increase a woman’s chance of giving birth to a child with any of six different birth defects. Spina bifida birth defects in particular increased by 12 percent for the children of mothers taking Depakote.
However, this research and FDA warnings regarding Depakote birth defects came too late for some mothers. As a result, many individuals are now filing Depakote lawsuits against Abbott Laboratories for failing to warn women and doctors about the potential birth defect side effects.
Depakote Birth Defects Litigation
One of the first Depakote birth defects lawsuits was filed in July 2012, when 27 mothers jointly sued Abbott in Illinois federal court, alleging they gave birth to children with birth defects after taking Depakote during their pregnancies. This was the first in a wave of Depakote lawsuits against the drug’s manufacturer.
In May 2012, Abbott agreed to pay $3 million in a Depakote settlement with the state of Arkansas for allegedly marketing Depakote for unapproved, off-label uses like autism and schizophrenia treatment. At this time, Abbott Labs also pleaded guilty to federal charges for illegally promoting Depakote to elderly patients suffering from dementia who were also residing in nursing homes.
Women who took Depakote while pregnant and later gave birth to a child who experienced any of the birth defects listed above, you may be eligible to join a Depakote birth defects class action lawsuit or file an individual birth defects lawsuit and sue for damages, including medical costs, injuries, pain and suffering.
In general, Depakote lawsuits are filed individually by each plaintiff and are not class actions.
Do YOU have a legal claim? Fill out the form on this page now for a free, immediate, and confidential case evaluation. The 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. Hurry — statutes of limitations may apply.
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Join a Free Depakote Birth Defects Class Action Lawsuit Investigation
If you took Depakote prior to 2010 and your child was born with a birth defect, you may have a legal claim. Fill out the form for a free case evaluation.
An attorney will contact you if you qualify to discuss the details of your potential case.
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