According to a 2010 research study, the use of clomiphene citrate (also known as Clomid), a fertility drug, may actually cause women to give birth to children with severe birth defects.

Clomid is an oral prescription medication that can be taken in order to stimulate ovulation. Women who are experiencing trouble conceiving are generally prescribed Clomid right away as a type of “first-line” fertility treatment. However, it seems that some would-be mothers have decided to purchase Clomid online without a proper prescription for this fertility drug. Additionally, in absence of a doctor’s visit and prescription, these women are generally uninformed that if they do become pregnant while taking Clomid, they may be putting their child at risk of certain birth defects.

The Clomid birth defects study was published in the medical journal Human Reproduction and used data collected by the National Birth Defects Prevention Study between 1997 and 2005, a case-controlled, population-based study, examining major birth defects within the United States. The Clomid birth defects researchers were investigating if a link existed between the occurrence of birth defects and the use of Clomid by mothers wanting to become pregnant. This Clomid study purposefully excluded women who used IVF or other forms of reproductive technologies to aid in conception.

Results Of The Clomid Birth Defects Study

The researchers involved in the Clomid birth defects study found that women whose children had the birth defects listed below stated they used Clomid more often than mothers of children who did not exhibit these birth defects. The alleged Clomid birth defects include:

• Anencephaly
• Septal heart defects
• Coarctation of the aorta
• Esophageal atresia
• Craniosynostosis
• Omphalocele

Additionally, the use of Clomid to promote conception was also linked, in smaller numbers, with birth defects like Dandy-Walker malformation, muscular ventricular septal defect, and cloacal extrophy.

The results of this Clomid birth defects study demonstrate medical links that have been observed for the very first time. For example, this is the first time a link has been detected between the use of Clomid and Dandy-Walker malformation, coarctation of the aorta, esophageal atresia, and omphalocele. However, further study is needed to establish a causal link between Clomid use and these and other birth defects.

According to the researchers and the CDC, the results of this Clomid birth defects study should be interpreted with caution because the findings are based on a small group of women who use Clomid. However, if anything, this study indicates that further studies are needed to determine a link between Clomid and birth defects.

Clomid Birth Defects Lawsuits

A separate Clomid birth defects study, different from the one mentioned above, found that women who used Clomid without proper medical supervision were allegedly 300 percent more likely to give birth to child with birth defects when compared to women who did not use this fertility drug.

Women who used Clomid and later gave birth to a child with birth defects may consider filing a Clomid birth defects lawsuit, or joining a Clomid birth defects class action lawsuit.