Lawsuit over antidepressant Paxil and teenage suicide

The family of Michelle Van Syckel is suing both her doctors and GlaxoSmithKline, the maker of Paxil, charging that her downward spiral into depression was made dramatically worse by the very medication prescribed to treat it. The case, part of a growing body of evidence linking Paxil to suicidial thoughts and actions in the children who take it, could have far-reaching implications for the treatment of depression in adolescents.

The Van Syckel case and others like it have prompted regulators to act. In June, the US Food and Drug Administration, in an unprecedented decision, recommended that doctors stop prescribing Paxil to new patients under the age of 18 and advised parents to consult a doctor if their children are currently taking Paxil.

A Wyoming family won a $6.4 million dollar lawsuit against GlaxoSmithKline in 2000 after a man taking Paxil shot his wife, daughter, and grandaughter. The jury found there was enough scientific evidence to find Paxil primarily responsible for the violence.

Company spokesmen are naturally trying to minimise the concern.

Information from the Boston Globe story at the Link