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Antidepressant Woes
-November 17, 2005

The family of antidepressant drugs known as SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) has been one of Big Pharma's biggest successes.and possibly one of its biggest woes. One in twenty Americans take some type of SSRI medication. Last year alone, SSRI medications raked in an astounding $11 billion. Prozac, Zoloft, Paxil, and even Celexa and Luvox have become household names. However, recent reports of increased suicide risks indicate that the makers of these popular drugs are downplaying or ignoring fatal SRRI side effects.

Take the case of 37-year-old Tim "Woody" Witczak, described as an upbeat and optimistic man. Soon after starting Zoloft for job-related stress, this SSRI user committed suicide. His wife has since filed a lawsuit against Pfizer, Zoloft's maker, alleging that Zoloft caused her husband's suicide and that Pfizer has failed to warn consumers about these risks. This case, which will proceed in court next year, is just one of the numerous cases of perilous side effects induced by SSRIs.

In 2004, studies revealed that SSRIs double the risk of suicidal thoughts and behaviors in children. More recent studies have confirmed these same SRRI side effect risks apply to adult patients. In response to these risks, the FDA ordered the addition of a "black box" warning to all labeling for Zoloft, Paxil, Prozac, and other SSRIs. Many experts believe this warning has produced consumer doubts with irreversible repercussions. Billions of dollars in future sales are in jeopardy. Policymakers are being pressured to curb consumer drug ads. Lawsuits are pouring into courts on behalf of people who have suffered serious SSRI side effects.

But the trouble does not stop here. Critics argue that SSRI medications are over-prescribed for patients who suffer more mild maladies that may benefit from other forms of treatment. The British House of Commons Health Committee recently concluded that, in many cases, unhappiness needs to be regarded as part of the human spectrum of emotions, not labeled a medical condition requiring risky treatments.

Many allege that the SSRI suicide risks have been known for over a decade. Prozac suicide risks were discovered by Harvard researchers in 1990, after six patients developed "intense, violent suicidal preoccupations" while using Prozac. Also in 1990, an FDA official wrote a letter to his superiors harshly criticizing an Eli Lilly report which downplayed Prozac's suicide risks. In the mid-1990s more than 3,000 Paxil lawsuits were filed against GlaxoSmithKline on behalf of patients who suffered serious withdrawal side effects after terminating Paxil use.

Experts predict the controversy surrounding SSRI medications with continue to flare.

For more information on drug recalls and safety problems, please contact us to confer with an attorney.

 

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