Antidepressant Use in Pregnancy, Article Review Example

The article focuses on the safety of antidepressant during pregnancy. Up to 14% of pregnant women take antidepressants as the FDA has raised questions on the safety of the use of these drugs during pregnancy. The FDA’s research revealed how paroxetine (Paxil) causes defects in newborn babies. However, professionals in the field maintain that depression in pregnant women is associated with increased risks.

SSRIs (Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors) have been found to be effective in relieving depression for most patients as they block the reabsorption of serotonin. This neurotransmitter when altered has tremendous effects in helping a depressed patient. However, this drug does cross the placenta and affects the integrity of the fetus. Serotonin is a crucial element in the development stage of the fetus. It is the key to the accurate and proper formation and location of the different organs in the body. Studies depict SSRIs affecting this process, causing birth defects. Babies born from mothers taking SSRIs depict withdrawal symptoms as well as disrupted fetal non-R.E.M. sleep.

This article draws attention to an increasing problem is the pharmaceutical industry. SSRIs have largely been used to treat depression due to their efficiency in helping manage serotonin levels. However, the continued use of the drug has resulted in increasing birth deformities, leading to questions on the safety of SSRIs. The purpose of this article was important in shedding light on the effects of SSRIs on the fetus and newborns. This article is important in summarizing the different studies conducted to research effects of pregnant women taking antidepressants. This information is particularly useful to the different stakeholders involved. This includes patients (pregnant women experiencing depression), medical practitioners (doctors and psychologists) and pharmaceutical companies.

The authors manages to effectively formulate an argument and back it using statistical evidence from different sources. Information is drawn from a wide range of sources, mainly medical studies on the effects of SSRIs on the development of the fetus. This validates the argument as it is founded on statistical research. It depicts how inconsistent findings makes it difficult to make a conclusive stance on the use of SSRIs by pregnant women. However, The article fails to consider the issue of ethics. It fails to provide any indication of the ethical procedures followed in the studies from which it draws information. Ethics is an integral part of scientific research.

The author has provided a wide range of sources on the varying effects of SSRIs on the developing fetus. Questions that can arise from this article include;

1. What is the scope and depth of the studies employed in the article?
2. What are the specifics of the demographic that was under study?

Though SRRIs have been found to be effective, the risks associated with its use by pregnant women cannot be overlooked. The increasing risks of fetal deformities can cause panic amongst women with a history of depression and would like to get children. This is because women who stop using SSRIs usually expression regression in recovery and management of depression. As such, there is an increasing need for research on alternative or improved techniques of managing depression in pregnant women.

The issue at hand is of grave importance in the pharmaceutical industry and medical profession. There is need to develop alternative techniques of managing depression in a manner that the integrity of the fetus is not compromised. Increasing evidence of the negative effects of antidepressants on the fetus is alarming, validating the claim that antidepressants are largely responsible for the increasing number of birth defects experienced in the United States over the past two decades.

Works Cited

Byatt, Nancy, Kristina M Deligiannidis and Marlene P Freeman. “Antidepressant Use in Pregnancy: A Critical Review Focused on Risks and Controversies.” Acta Psychiatr Scand 127.2 (2013): 94-114. Electronic Source. 25 March 2015. <http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4006272/pdf/nihms-570293.pdf>.