Paxil - Changes Recommended
The death of Canadian university student Sara Carlin has brought attention back on the popular SSRI antidepressant Paxil. There have been a number of cases potentially linking the use of Paxil with increased risk of suicidal thoughts and fixations, particularly among young adults. Carlin was under the influence of Paxil, as well as alcohol and cocaine, when she hung herself in May 2007. While her doctor and Paxil's manufacturers stress that she had expressed depressive feelings leading up to the prescription of the medication, Carlin's family insist that she was normally a happy, healthy young lady and that the medication had drastically altered her personality.
A jury in the case has released a verdict, recommending strongly that doctors be retrained to properly inform patients of both the benefits and the risks of taking medicines such as Paxil. Emphasis would be on bringing up the rare but serious and dangerous side effects such as suicidal thoughts as in Sara Carlin's case.
Carlin's family said they were pleased with the verdict. They believe that had these warnings been available, Sara might have been able to make different decisions and could even still be alive.
This case comes at a curious time for Paxil's manufacturers. The company recently elected to settle nearly 200 pending and unresolved cases related to the drug and its role in the formation of birth defects. Usually a controversial medication is subject only to one type of litigation at a time, but Paxil is dealing with matters on two fronts: The formation of birth defects and the suicidal thoughts link.
Ultimately, this likely will not prove a watershed or landmark case in the ongoing struggle to bring the truth of these medications more completely into the open. However, it is a positive step that could very genuinely lead to better information — and prevent future tragedies.
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