The Alarming Increase of Antidepressant Use

According to the World Health Organization, depression remains to be one of the leading causes of disability in the United States causing productivity losses amounting to $40 million.   Over 150 million people have been afflicted with the mental disorder and the number is growing as years pass, the BBC News also reports in 2011.   Around half of this number is prescribed with antidepressant drugs such as Paxil, Zoloft, Lexapro and Prozac, according to various studies.   With reports of Paxil alcohol effects, birth defects, heart problems and other reported side effects, antidepressant use have grown a cause for concern.

Many patients are exposed to the side effects of various drugs considering the rising number of dependencies on antidepressants such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors or SSRIs.   Take for example Paxil. It causes severe side effects including birth defects, cardiovascular complications and suicidal behavior.  Many lawsuits have been filed due to these issues.  Due to injuries caused by several antidepressant drugs, many depression patients are now reconsidering their treatment options.





According to the New York Times, the number of Americans taking antidepressants has doubled to 10.1 percent of the population in 2005 compared with 1996, increasing across income and age groups over the years.   The Columbia University researchers say that the use of psychotherapy declined among depression-stricken patients and an estimated 27 million Americans ages six and older were taking these antidepressant drugs by 2005. The skyrocketing antidepressant use has also been reported by CBS News.   A report by the Center for Disease Control National Center for Health Statistics says that over a 10-year period the use of the pills has risen a staggering 400 percent.

An alarming finding has also reflected that eight of Americans without any depressive symptoms take the drugs.   Dr. Gary Small, a psychiatrist and director of the UCLA Center on Aging told ABC News, says "The reality is that there are not enough mental health care providers around to treat all who need it."   "Part of what we do as psychiatrists is teach doctors how to diagnose and treat depression so that a lot of depression can be handled in primary care."

A call for a higher perusal and regulation over these drugs had been warranted by this concern as the number of antidepressant users increase.   More and more users are affected and exposed by the harmful repercussions of antidepressant intake.   Issues like Paxil lawsuit and other inconveniences also raise a concern among depression-stricken patients.   These controversies and Paxil lawsuits have been incited all over the country by reason of paroxetine use.


REFERENCES:

http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B00E2DD1539F937A3575BC0A96F9C8B63&ref=antidepressants

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504763_162-20123062-10391704.html
http://www.webmd.com/depression/news/20111019/use-of-antidepressants-on-the-rise-in-the-us

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GlaxoSmithKline to Compensate Paxil Users




It is a wonderful feeling when you get compensated when someone has done you wrong.   It affirms the sense of justice that you have. That is what most people that have been wronged by GlaxoSmithKline is looking for.   Paxil is one of the best selling drugs of GlaxoSmithKline, but it under strict precaution because of all the issues regarding the side effects of the medicine. Paxil is an Antidepressant used to medicate depression, anxiety disorders and OCD.  This antidepressant is categorized as an SSRI or a Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor which prevents the re-absorption of Serotonin in order stabilizes the mood of a person.  Most people are not aware of side effects that can be caused by Paxil. But for those who have experienced side effects that have really made their lives a living nightmare, are now taking up the challenge in filing charges against the manufacturer.   A study has seen a connection between Paxil and breast cancer made by Harvard University in one of their recent studies.

 It may feel overwhelming to file a case against a big international company but one won’t feel alone because a lot of people are now doing it.   Most physician prescribe Paxil instead of some drug because it has a low risk for developing heart attack but it has also its own set of disadvantages. Paxil has been introduced in the year 1992 and since then there were already cases that were filed against them due to side effects that causes people to have violent behaviors, it may also have suicidal tendencies for people ages 24 and below.  It can also cause serious birth defects for the unborn child of a woman taking Paxil on the first trimester of their pregnancy.   Severe withdrawal symptoms also made people trying to wean off the drug stick to using the drug.

Charges over the years that were filed against the company are being settled.  People who have claims against the company are filing Paxil lawsuit to get compensation from the damages that they have undergone while using the medicine.  Women who have children born with heart defects due to using Paxil also took the chance in filing a case.   And even the loved ones of people who had committed suicide because of taking Paxil are filing cases against GlaxoSmithKline.

URL References:
•             paxilbirthdefectlaw.com/paxil-lawsuit/
•             drugs.com/paxil.html
•             drugs.com/sfx/paxil-side-effects.html

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Paxil Manufacturer to Pay $3 Billion to Settle Lawsuits


Based on an article in the Washington Post, GlaxoSmithKline(GSK) agrees to disburse $3 billion to settle US lawsuits. This amount is for the resolution of unsettled legal cases in the US, pertaining to illegal promotion of the company’s prescription drugs, questionable Medicaid rebates, and issues surrounding Avandia, the popular diabetes drug that has been shown to cause an increased risk of heart attacks.

GSK is also the manufacturer of Paxil, a member of the class of antidepressant drugs known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI). New data analysis, however, showed that antidepressants like Paxil may not be the best way in treating depression. This is generally because of the dangerous side effects it allegedly causes and some of those are even life-altering. This analysis was published in a recent issue of the Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics and in another article in the Medical News Today.

With the various public health advisories from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), people with depression should consider another way of treatment other than Paxil intake which has been consistently blamed for causing harmful side effects.  Other than the clinical findings and research studies, reports from patients showed that Paxil has caused severe damages on their lives in general and health in particular. These reports are corroborated through the Paxil lawsuits they filed against GSK.



Paxil has been the object of litigation due to the various harms it caused the patients, including birth defects, suicide, abnormal mood shifts, unusual personality changes, hallucination, psychosis, insomnia, hostility, agitation, self-harm and other acts of violence.


Several Paxil lawsuits have been filed to recover damages for patients who committed suicide while taking Paxil. The litigations contend that GlaxoSmithKline failed to warn the public about the dangers of taking Paxil. One class action in California implicated the company of restricting the information about the side effects of Paxil from the public.

 The company was further accused by US governmental entities of illegally intruding with the release of a generic drug version of Paxil. This caused other states to pay more for the antidepressant drug in their health programs.  In March 2006, GSK agreed to pay $14 million (to be divided among the states affected) in settlement of the dispute.

Also, many women who have given birth to children with Paxilbirth defects have filed lawsuits against GSK, alleging that it should have informed them of the dangers before they became pregnant. Those who want compensation for the distress they suffered under Paxil regimen may seek legal advice for more on information on Paxil lawsuits.


References:
•           injury-law.freeadvice.com/injury-law/drug-toxic_chemicals/paxil-lawsuit.htm
•           www.resource4thepeople.com/defectivedrugs/paxil.html
•           lawsuits.lawinfo.com/Paxil/paxil-class-action-lawsuit.html
•           paxillawsuitandsideeffects.com/


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