Effexor Birth Defect Lawsuit Opens the Door to Others

Lots of press attention has been given to birth defect lawsuits filed against the makers of Zoloft, Paxil, Prozac and other SSRI antidepressants, but rarely do you hear about birth defect lawsuits filed against the makers of SNRIs. That all changed earlier this year when Ohio parents Glenn and Lauren Boyer sued Wyeth Pharmaceuticals and Pfizer over the death of their infant, which they allege was directly caused by Lauren’s ingestion of their drug Effexor, an SNRI antidepressant, during pregnancy. The case is believed to be the first that declares a link between Effexor and birth defects.

Effexor was approved by the FDA in 1993, but companies behind the SNRI (serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor) drug neglected to disclose the birth defect risks to physicians treating women of child-bearing age, the Boyers allege in the Effexor birth defect lawsuit (entitled Boyer & Boyer v. Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, et al.). Lauren took Effexor while she was pregnant to treat her symptoms of depression, unaware of the harm she could potentially be causing her unborn baby. It wasn’t until their baby girl, Adelaide, was born on February 11, 2010 that the Boyers realized she suffered severe heart defects, including a malformed aorta, no aortic valve, a malformed mitral valve, severe left hypoplastic heart, and other lethal heart defects. Adelaide died shortly after taking her first breath. The Boyers allege in the lawsuit that these heart defects were caused by Lauren’s use of Effexor during pregnancy.

SNRI/SSRI Birth Defects  

Numerous studies have shown that antidepressant medication ingested during pregnancy can be passed from the mother to the fetus, exposing the fetus to the drug’s effects. Most of these birth defect studies have focused on SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor) antidepressants, which are more commonly prescribed, but evidence does exist that SNRIs can cause similar birth defects.

Drugs included in the SNRI class are Effexor (venlafaxine), Pristiq (desvenlafaxine) and Cymbalta (duloxetine).

SNRI/SSRI antidepressant birth defects can include:

* Heart defects
* Craiosynostosis (abnormally shaped skull)
* Omphalocele (abdominal birth defects)
* Anal atresia
* Cleft lip/cleft palette
* Club foot * PPHN (persistent pulmonary hypertension)
* Spina bifida
* Autism Spectrum Disorder

Filing an Antidepressant Birth Defect Lawsuit 

The FDA reports that 1 in 5 Americans take an antidepressant, and millions of these are mothers. Thousands of lawsuits have already been filed against the makers of Zoloft, Paxil, Prozac and others for failing to warn these women about the risk of birth defects. GlaxoKlineSmith, the maker of Paxil, has already spent nearly $1 billion in birth defect lawsuit settlements, resolving nearly 800 Paxil birth defect lawsuits, according to a July 20, 2010 Bloomberg article.

If you took an SSRI or SNRI antidepressant during pregnancy, and your child was born with one or more birth defects, you may have legal options. A birth defect compensation specialist can determine if you have a case to file an SSRI birth defect lawsuit or class action lawsuit, or an SNRI birth defect lawsuit or class action lawsuit.