Mother Sues Pfizer Over Child’s Zoloft Birth Defects

By Robert J. Boumis | December 13, 2013

Category: Legal News

Zoloft birth defect lawsuit Mother Angel Urban has filed a lawsuit against Pfizer Inc., the manufacturer of the SSRI antidepressant Zoloft (sertraline hydrochloride), on behalf of herself and her child. Her Zoloft lawsuit alleges that the drug caused her child, whose name was not revealed in court documents, to be born with serious birth defects.

The Zoloft lawsuit asserts that SSRI antidepressants can cause birth defects and that the manufacturers knew, or reasonably should have known, of this alleged risk. Per the birth defects lawsuit, post-market surveillance indicated that women who took Zoloft gave birth to children with birth defects, including heart defects like Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension of the Newborn (PPHN).

Urban cites medical literature in her lawsuit that indicates a possible connection between the drug and a risk of birth defects like those suffered by her child. The Zoloft birth defects lawsuit also states that clinical testing and post-market surveillance both indicated similar risks.

The Zoloft lawsuit further alleges that the manufacturers were not only aware of the risks but that they actively downplayed them, preventing health care professionals and patients like Urban from having all of the information they needed to make informed medical decisions. The Zoloft birth defects lawsuit alleges that despite having this information, the manufacturers did not include these warnings in the prescribing information associated with the drug, and in fact “over-promoted” the drug. Per the complaint, Urban would have never used the drug during her pregnancy had she been aware of the serious risks to her child allegedly linked to the drug.

Urban’s Zoloft lawsuit alleges that the actions of Pfizer constitute a failure to warn, negligence and fraud. The birth defects lawsuit seeks relief for lost wages, medical costs, attorney fees, and other forms of compensation, which amounts to more than $75,000.

The Zoloft birth defects lawsuit is formally titled Angel Urban, et al. v. Pfizer Inc., et al., Case No. 2:13-cv-06484-CMR, as a part of multidistrict litigation called In Re: Zoloft Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2342, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

Zoloft Lawsuits Grow

Studies have shown that women who take SSRI antidepressants during the first trimester of pregnancy are more likely to give birth to a child with congenital defects, including:

ASD/VSD (hole in heart)
Hypoplastic Left Heart or Right Heart Syndrome
Tetralogy of Fallot
Pulmonary Valve Stenosis
Other heart malformation or heart defect
Cleft Palate or Cleft Lip
Spina Bifida
Omphalocele
Club foot

If you took an antidepressant such as Celexa, Lexapro, Paxil, Prozac, Zoloft or Effexor and your child was born with one or more of the birth defects listed above, you may qualify to pursue compensation from the drug manufacturer. Your child must be under the age of 18 and had surgery to correct his or congenital defects. Learn more and obtain a free case review at the SSRI Antidepressant Birth Defect Class Action Lawsuit Investigation.