Prozac Lawsuits, Litigation & Lawyers – What You Should Know

Eli Lilly is defending hundreds of lawsuits alleging that its antidepressant Prozac caused birth defects, PPHN, autism, suicide and and more. Here's what you should know about Prozac lawsuits, litigation and how a Prozac injury lawyer can help you receive the compensation you deserve.

Prozac Lawsuits & Litigation

Pharmaceutical giant, Eli Lilly, is defending hundreds of Prozac lawsuits alleging that the popular antidepressant drug (a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor or SSRI also known as fluoxetine) caused users to experience injuries such as birth defects, autism, heart conditions, PPHN (persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn), suicide and violent behavior and more. Here's a quick look at each:

• Birth defects. Birth defects such as skeletal defects, neural tube defects and heart defects have been reported by women who took Prozac during their pregnancy. Studies have shown that too much serotonin remains in the area where the cells of the fetus develop. As a result, Prozac birth defects such as anal atresia, cleft lip, clubbed feet, craniosynostosis, limb reduction, neural tube defects involving the brain and spinal cord, omphalocele and sexual dysfunction have been reported.

  The FDA has issued several warnings about SSRI drugs and birth defects and the New England Journal of Medicine reported that women who take SSRI drugs during pregnancy have a four times greater risk of delivering a child with a septal heart defect. These birth defects, FDA warnings, clinical reports -and the manufacturer's failure to adequately warn about these risks -have led to hundreds of Prozac birth defect lawsuits.

  A recent $2.5 million verdict against GlaxoSmithKline over birth defects from Paxil -also an SSRI anti-depressant drug -may set the tone for how Prozac birth defect litigation is handled in the future as similar allegations concerning unreasonable testing and failure to warn about known risks are being made against both manufacturers.

   

• Autism. A July 2011 study published in the Archives of General Psychiatry claims that the risk of delivering a child with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) may double if SSRIs were used in the year prior to delivery and quadruple if taken in the first trimester of pregnancy.

   

• Heart conditions. Taking SSRI drugs, such as Prozac, during pregnancy can lead to an increased risk of congenital malformation and specifically cardiac malformations such as atrial, septal and ventricular defects. Women who take these anti-depressant drugs during pregnancy quadruple the risk of their babies experiencing septal heart defects when taken during the first trimester of pregnancy.

   

• PPHN. PPHN, Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension in Newborns, is a lung disorder n which arteries are severely restricted, causing the blood pressure in the pulmonary artery of the heart to rise to excessive levels, restrict blood flow and suppress oxygen levels. Women taking SSRI drugs in their third trimester have a six times greater chance of delivering a child with PPHN.

   

• Suicide & violent behavior. Allegations that Prozac leads to suicide, suicidal thoughts and violent behavior have been in the news for over a decade -and Eli Lilly has paid millions of dollars to injured victims and family members who lost loved ones due to Prozac use.

  Stories of bizarre and frightening behavior are continually reported about decent people who family members, friends and neighbors often say had no history of such behavior. For example, an elderly man committed suicide after taking Prozac for only three days. He threw the pills away, but when he committed suicide 4 days later, high levels of Prozac’s active ingredient, fluoxetine, were found in his blood. The Prozac lawsuit filed by his widow alleged that Eli Lilly knew and concealed that the drug was hard for some people to metabolize.

  Violent acts have also been reported. For example, a 27-year-old man taking Prozac fired a gun 20 times into a crowded bar, killing two people and injuring three -an act which those who knew him say was simply impossible.

Prozac injury attorneys say that all of the injuries listed above could have been avoided if the manufacturer had done more to warn about the increased risks of serious side effects associated with Prozac.

Hiring A Prozac Injury Lawyer

Although many SSRI drugs already contain FDA black box warnings, Prozac injury lawyers say those warnings simply aren't sufficient and that manufacturers have fallen short when it comes to adequately warning women about the serious birth defect side effects associated with SSRI drugs.

If your child has suffered an SSRI birth defect injury or exhibited suicidal or violent behavior due to an SSRI drug such as Prozac, Paxil, Effexor, Celexa, Lexapro, Zoloft or other drug, contact an experienced Prozac injury lawyer to discuss your situation and determine whether you might be entitled to compensation for surgeries and medical procedures to correct or address defects, special medical care, medical monitoring, physical therapy, full or part time nursing care, loss of wages / potential earnings, pain and suffering, emotional distress and more. Getting a clearer perspective on what you might be entitled to and how the process works will make it easier for you to decide whether taking further action may be in your best interests.