HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS REGISTER		Author Keyword(s) Vol Page [Advanced]

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Submit a response Alert me when this article is cited Alert me when eLetters are posted Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this link to a friend Similar articles in ADC Online Similar articles in PubMed Add article to my folders Download to citation manager Request Permissions Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Bot, P Articles by van der Stappen, J Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Bot, P Articles by van der Stappen, J Related Collections Pregnancy Drugs: psychiatry Adverse drug reactions Perinatal

Neonatal effects of exposure to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors during pregnancy

¹ Department of Paediatrics, Canisius-Wilhelmina Hospital, PO Box 9015, 6500 GS Nijmegen, the Netherlands
² Department of Clinical Chemical Analysis, Canisius-Wilhelmina Hospital

Correspondence to:
Correspondence to:
Dr Semmekrot
B.Semmekrot@cwz.nl

Keywords: paroxetine; fluoxetine; sertraline; selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors; pregnancy

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are often prescribed during pregnancy.

It has long been debated whether adverse neonatal effects described after maternal SSRI use^1–4 are caused by serotonin toxicity or withdrawal.⁵ Recently, the information of a database analysis of 93 suspected cases of SSRI induced neonatal withdrawal has been regarded as enough information to confirm a possible causal relation.⁶

We describe six infants with neonatal symptoms after maternal SSRI use. Table 1 summarises data from these infants. Mothers in cases 1 and 4 used multiple drugs during pregnancy. Because neonatal withdrawal to clorazepate has been described as neurological depression, this agent may have played an additional role in the initial symptoms in case 1. Neither oxcarbazepine nor thyroxine are known to cause neonatal abstinence. Gastro-oesophageal reflux, observed in case 1, may contribute to feeding problems, but the infant’s symptoms decreased before the start of anti-reflux medication, suggesting multicausality.