Parents File Effexor Birth Defect Lawsuit in Montana
By Andrea Gressman
As a patient you typically trust that the prescription you are being prescribed by your trusted doctor is safe for you to use, but that is not necessarily the situation when it comes to SSRI antidepressants. When Lisa Rooney was pregnant with her daughter in 2009 she took an SSRI antidepressant known as Effexor XR and it probably never crossed her mind that the medication which had been prescribed to help her would cause so much harm to her infant daughter.
In an October 3, 2012 report by The Montana Standard as well as the Associated Press (AP), it was reported that Montana couple Lisa Rooney and Wayne Halvorsen recently filed an SSRI antidepressant birth defect lawsuit after their infant daughter was born in 2009 with extensive birth defects as a result of Ms. Rooney taking Effexor during her pregnancy. The SSRI antidepressant birth defects lawsuit states that a heart defect was developed in the baby girl because of the pregnancy side effects caused by Effexor.
The Effexor birth defect lawsuit was filed in the Butte District County and the manufacturers of Effexor XR, Wyeth Pharmaceuticals Inc. and Pfizer Inc. CVS Pharmacy, Montana CVS Pharmacy, and Caremark RX were all listed as defendants in the Effexor birth defect lawsuit. The couple’s birth defect attorney also listed Judith Schuelke, a CVS pharmacist, and Dr. Rindo Sironi of the Continental Divide OB/GYN, who are both of Butte, Montana, as co-defendants in the Effexor XR lawsuit.
It was reported in the SSRI antidepressant birth defect lawsuit that the baby of the plaintiffs required multiple surgeries in order to repair her Effexor heart defect. It has also been reported that the little girl is expected to need additional surgeries in order to treat the heard condition in the future. It has been claimed in the Effexor birth defect lawsuit that the SSRI antidepressant was directly responsible for these heart defects.
The SSRI antidepressant lawsuit claims that the drug manufacture, Wyeth, failed to properly notify the medical community as well as the general public about the side effect risk of birth defects that have been linked to the SSRI antidepressants when a pregnant mother consumes the SSRI antidepressant either before or during the pregnancy. It is also the claim of the Effexor XR lawsuit that the physician, Dr. Sironi, continued to prescribe the medication to Ms. Rooney despite knowing that she was trying to become pregnant and continued to provide the plaintiff with the prescription of Effexor XR during her pregnancy.
Effexor XR was approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Because of this, Pfizer, which recently acquired Wyeth, submitted a statement saying that the SSRI antidepressant lawsuit was without merit. However, the couple still plans on pursuing the Effexor birth defect lawsuit despite Pfizer’s predictable position on the matter. There have been a number of studies confirming the position of the plaintiffs in this Effexor XR lawsuit linking SSRI antidepressant to side effects like persistent pulmonary hypertension (PPHN).
SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) and SNRI (serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors) are very popular when it comes to antidepressants today. They are frequently prescribed to treat a number of cognitive and emotional disorders. In most situations the benefits of these antidepressants due outweigh the side effect risks but that doesn’t necessarily weigh true when it comes to these SNRI and SSRI antidepressants being taken during pregnancy or even if a woman is considering getting pregnant.
It has been a growing concern in the United States as more and more of these SSRI antidepressant birth defects are being reported. If you or someone you know had a child with birth defects due to a SSRI antidepressant visit the SSRI Antidepressant Birth Defect Class Action Lawsuit Investigation page right away. You can submit your information to a qualified SSRI antidepressant lawsuit attorney and you will receive a free consultation about your potential SSRI antidepressant lawsuit. These SSRI antidepressant birth defect attorneys are prepared to help you seek compensation for any birth defect believed to be caused by Zoloft, Paxil, Celexa, Lexapro, Prozac, Effexor, Cymbalta, Pristiq, and more.
Updated December 11th, 2012
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