Texas Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension of the Newborn (PPHN) Lawsuit

Did you take an antidepressant or a SSRI while you were pregnant? Did you have a baby with Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension of the Newborn (PPHN) or other birth defect? You may want to contact a PPHN lawyer, because you may have a PPHN lawsuit. Recently, the FDA has made the public aware of new research that may link antidepressants to PPHN. Now, mothers whose babies were born with birth defects and birth complications are filing lawsuits against the drug-makers. Our Texas PPHN lawyer can help.

What You Can Do & How a PPHN Lawyer Can Help

Do I Have a Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension of the Newborn (PPHN) Lawsuit? Collen A. Clark is a true advocate for his clients and is passionate about helping Texans that have been injured or wronged. If you or a loved one has given birth to a child with a birth defect after taking an SSRI, antidepressant, or other medication during pregnancy, you should contact our lawyers immediately. You may be entitled to compensation by filing a Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension of the Newborn (PPHN) lawsuit.

NEW UPDATE: Safety warning from the FDA Regarding Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension of the Newborn

December 14, 2011 — The FDA has issued a new safety announcement regarding the link between PPHN and antidepressants taken by mothers while pregnant. The FDA is updating the safety announcement it made in June 2006, in which one study found a link between PPHN and these medications. Since that study was published, several studies have found conflicting results. The FDA has decided to update the safety labeling on antidepressants to include the new information that warns women of the potential risk to an unborn child.

What antidepressants are linked to PPHN?

Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors (SSRIs) and antidepressants have been linked to a variety of birth defects. This class of medications includes the following drugs:

• Paxil, Seroxat (paroxetine)
• Zoloft, Lustral (sertraline)
• Celexa (citalopram)
• Lexapro, Cipralex (escitalopram)
• Symbyax (fluxetine and olanzapine)
• Wellbutrin, Zyban (bupropion)
• Effexor (vanlafaxine)

What is PPHN?

When a baby is developing in the mother’s womb, it does not use its lungs because it cannot breathe. Instead, the mother’s placenta supplies the baby with oxygenated blood and nutrients. When the baby’s heart forms, it normally has a hole called the “ductus arteriosus.” Blood passes through this hole and bypasses the baby’s lungs. When the baby is born, the baby must breathe to supply oxygen to its blood. The entire circulatory system undergoes a massive change.

Within minutes after birth, the pulmonary vascular resistance in the lungs drops dramatically, the flow of blood is reversed through the ductus arteriosus, and the arteries in the lungs fill with blood. The baby breathes, supplying oxygen to the blood. The hole in the baby’s heart closes within a few minutes or hours after birth (all babies are a little blue until this hole closes). As soon as the hole closes, the heart-lung systm should be able to provide the body with oxygen-rich blood.

When a baby is born with Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension, however, the heart-lung system fails to “switch over” from the way it was before the baby was born. The pulmonary vascular resistance in the lungs remains high, very little blood flows into the lungs, and the ductus arteriosus does not close. Therefore, much of the blood never reaches the lungs.

Because the blood cannot become oxygenated, the baby turns blue (or “cyanotic”) because the body is oxygen deprived.

Signs & Symptoms of PPHN

Persistent Pulmonary Hypertension of the Newborn happens within a few hours after birth, and often follows a complicated birth, though it may occur spontaneously. The incidence is roughly one per 1,000 live births in the U.S.

After the baby is born, the following symptoms will appear:

• Rapid breathing
• Rapid heart-rate
• Respiratory distress
• Cyanosis (when the baby’s skin, nails, and lips turn blue due to lack of oxygen)
• Heart murmur

Treatment