Zoloft Lawsuit Filed by Florida Woman

A Florida woman has filed a lawsuit against Pfizer, the drug maker of the popular antidepressant Zoloft, after her child was allegedly born with congenital birth defects and heart problems associated with her use of the medication. She claims that these birth defects are a result of her taking the medication exactly as prescribed during her pregnancy. The lawsuit was filed on the 25th of May, 2012, in the United States’ District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia and will be presided over by judge Cynthia M. Rufe. A number of other patients have also filed Zoloft lawsuits after their children were born with birth defects resulting from Zoloft use by the pregnant mother.

Zoloft birth defects a lifelong concern

Zoloft was originally approved to treat depression, obsessive compulsive disorder, anxiety disorders, and other common but serious psychological conditions by the Food and Drug Administration in 1991. Since then, it has been linked with a number of serious birth defects, including congenital heart defects, persistent pulmonary hypertension of the newborn, club foot, and craniosynostosis. These side effects can have an impact on a child born with them for the rest of his or her life, and can come with a significant emotional and financial toll on his or her family. The plaintiff in this case accuses drug maker Pfizer of failing to warn patients and physicians about the risk of birth defects related to Zoloft use and claims that if she had known about the potential side effects that have been linked to the medication, she never would have used Zoloft while she was pregnant.

The plaintiff also states that a number of studies conducted on SSRI medications such as Zoloft should have proved that birth defects were a significant side effect, but despite the evidence, Pfizer failed to warn patients about the potential side effects of the medication.

Generic defendant also named

The plaintiff and her Zoloft lawyers also named a generic manufacturer of the medication, Greenstone Ltd., as a defendant. Generics are not liable in failure to warn cases per a decision made by the Supreme Court in 2011, so it is not clear whether this part of the lawsuit will be successful.

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