According to some medical studies, commonly prescribed antibiotics like the ever-popular Zithromax have been linked with an increased risk of birth defects among pregnant mothers.

Zithromax (also sold under the names as azithromycin, Zpak, or Zmax) is a popular antibiotic designed, manufactured, and sold by Pfizer Inc. This antibiotic drug is regularly prescribed to treat a variety of bacterial infections including urinary tract infections, pneumonia, tonsillitis, and other conditions. Since its U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval in 1996, Zithromax has made millions of dollars in sales for Pfizer each and every year. Additionally, in the 2011 alone, 55.3 million Zithromax prescriptions were written, producing over $464 million in sales.

However, despite Zithromax’s reputation as a quick and effective antibiotic, it has also been linked with many serious Zithromax side effects including liver damage/failure, kidney failure, and SJS skin conditions. And now according to recent reports, antibiotic-induced birth defects may also be added to the growing list of Zithromax side effects.

Zithromax Birth Defects Study

According to a 2009 birth defects study published in Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, research suggests that antibiotics prescribed to treat urinary tract infections, such as Zithromax, have been linked with an increased risk of birth defects. This birth defects study was funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and was the first large quantitative analysis of the use of antibiotics by pregnant women and the results of said antibiotic use on the women and their children.

According to the research study led by Dr. Krista Crider, birth defects are most likely to occur when mothers used antibiotics belonging to two particular classes of drugs, those classes being sulfa drugs and urinary germicides, also known as nitrofurnantoins. Zithromax was not specifically included in this birth defects study; however, it is a popularly prescribed antibiotic that many pregnant women may have taken, and this study focuses on whether or not pregnant women should be taking antibiotics at all because of the possible risk of birth defects.

Dr. Crider and her fellow researchers looked at over 13,000 cases involving mothers who gave birth to infants with birth defects. These cases were paired with 5,000 other cases of mothers who lived in the same areas but gave birth to healthy babies. These tens of thousands of women were interviewed two years after their pregnancies over a six week period by phone.

This birth defects study identified which women had and had not been exposed to antibiotics during their pregnancy. According to the resulting data, sulfa-based antibiotics had been linked with the more severe birth defect cases, allegedly resulting in brain and heart defects and also causing some infants to be born with shorter legs and arms. Nitrofurantoin-based drugs were found to also cause other types of birth defects, like cleft palate and minor heart problems.

While this birth defects study poses some important questions regarding the safety of using antibiotics while pregnant, Dr. Crider has stated that further study is needed confirm whether or not antibiotics, like Zithromax, can be conclusively be linked to birth defects and severe health risks to mothers and children.

Mothers who took Zithromax while pregnant and later gave birth to a child exhibiting one or more birth defects may be eligible to file a Zithromax birth defects lawsuit or join a Zithromax birth defects class action lawsuit.