Though many may not realize it, depression can be a deadly disease. Medical professionals are well aware of this, and treatment guidelines for pregnant women with depression reflect the idea that using antidepressants during pregnancy to treat mental illness outweighs any risks to mother and child.

However, new research on birth defects causes is forcing this viewpoint to evolve.

According to a New York Times article, roughly 14 percent of pregnant women in the United States take antidepressants during pregnancy.

The article quoted Associate Professor from the University of British Columbia School of Population and Public Health Barbara Mintzes, who said that the working hypothesis is that women on antidepressants will take care of themselves better during the pregnancy.

But research shows this to be an ungrounded idea. Instead, the risk of birth defects seems to present more harm than the benefits of antidepressants. Describing the empirical research on the subject, Mintzes said, “when you look for it, all you find are harms.”

Antidepressants During Pregnancy

The New York Times article focused on studies that SSRI-type antidepressants may cause birth defects. This class of drugs includes many blockbusters like Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, and many others.

While these drugs were a quantum leap in depression treatment over older therapies, they are able to cross the placenta and enter a developing child. The alleged mechanism for antidepressants to cause birth defects is related to the way these drugs work.

Antidepressants like Zoloft and Paxil regulate a neurotransmitter called serotonin (the second “S” in SSRI). In adults, serotonin regulates mood and reward-seeking behaviors.

But in a developing fetus, the chemical directs many aspects of development across the body, including the heart, lungs, and even the bones of the face and skull.

Common birth defects allegedly linked to SSRIs include heart defects like atrial septal defects, lung problems like persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn (PPHN), and facial defects like cleft palates and cleft lips.

More than just a hypothesis, many studies have backed up the idea that taking SSRI antidepressants like Zoloft, Paxil, and Prozac may increase the risk of birth defects and other problems for children. Studies on the subject have had some trouble teasing out the risk of SSRI birth defects independently from the risk of birth defects for women with depression.

For example, several studies have found that women with depression are more likely to have a child with autism or ADHD, regardless of using SSRI antidepressants during pregnancy. However, other studies have found an increased risk of PPHN, cleft lip/cleft palate, clubfoot, and other types of birth defects associated with SSRIs.

Others have reported SSRI withdrawal symptoms in newborns, disrupting sleep at a critical age. Still other studies on SSRI birth defects have found that children born to mothers who took SSRIs tend to be underweight and perform poorly on a test for thriving after birth called the APGAR.

These tests were statistically controlled for depression and found that SSRI use, independent of the mother’s mental illness was linked to these risks.

Birth Defect Lawsuits

Birth defect lawsuits have been filed to women who had children with birth defects after taking an SSRI antidepressant during pregnancy.

These SSRI birth defects lawsuits allege that drug makers were aware of the risk allegedly linked to drugs like Zoloft, Paxil, and Prozac, but continued to aggressively market the drug and downplay the risk of serious birth defects.