Recent studies suggest that the use of fertility drugs such as Serophene and Clomid (clomiphene citrate) before or during pregnancy may cause various birth defects in children born to mothers who used these fertility drugs while trying to conceive.

Serophene Category X

Serophene—generically known as Clomiphene or Clomid—is a selective estrogen receptor modulator (SERM).  It’s approved use is to induce ovulation in females who have difficulty producing their own eggs, but who still want to have children of their own. Serophene is sometimes prescribed off-label to treat male infertility as well. The most serious side effect of this drug is its tendency to cause Serophene birth defects.

Because Serophene has a high propensity to cause birth defects, it has been placed in category X by the Food and Drug Administration, meaning that there is ample evidence that it can cause birth defects. These birth defects are most likely to occur if a woman is unaware of her pregnancy and is still taking Serophene. Unfortunately, the percentage of birth defects in offspring of women taking Serophene is much too high to tolerate.

Study Suggest Fertility Drugs Linked to Birth Defects

One study of 2,339 women found that 58 of them who were taking Serophene reported birth defects in their offspring. The risk of some birth defects goes up substantially—sometimes by as much as 170 percent—after being exposed to Serophene.

In 2003, a different study found that women who took Clomid (Serophene) during pregnancy had a 10 times higher risk of having a child born with spina bifida, a neural tube birth defect where the backbone and spinal column do not completely close before birth.

Additionally, a study by the Harvard School of Public Health in 2010 found that Clomid (Serophene) and other fertility drugs taken during pregnancy nearly doubled the risk for autism spectrum disorders (ASDs).

These and other recent studies suggest that the use of Serophene during pregnancy could cause a number of different birth defects, including:

• Heart Defects
• Cleft Lip or Cleft Palates
• Autism Spectrum Disorders
• Dandy Walker Malformation Syndrome
• Anencephaly
• Abnormal Bone Development
• Dwarfism
• Neural Tube Defects
• Intellectual Disability
• Tissue Malformations
• Deafness
• Genital Malformations
• Other severe birth defects

Some of these birth defects–such as anencephaly, which involves an open cranium with an absence of a brain–can be fatal.

Serophene Birth Defects Lawsuits

Women who have difficulty trying to conceive should not be subject to the additional stress of giving birth to children with severe, occasionally life-threatening, birth defects. If you or a loved one took Serophene during pregnancy and your baby was born with birth defects, you may be eligible for compensation through a Serophene birth defects lawsuit.