Three conflicting headlines.
Today in Google news I saw this headline:
Studies Find No Link Between SSRIs and Congenital Heart Disease
immediately followed by two others:
Studies Link Antidepressant Use to Birth Defects
and
Antidepressants Rated Low Risk in Pregnancy.
Confusing, eh? The first is from MedLink, the second is from the Los Angeles Times, and the third is from the New York Times. I’d say the first and third are the more reliable sources. It doesn’t matter, though, because in the event that I get pregnant (not that it is really likely anytime soon), I will continue taking my SSRIs, though maybe at a reduced dose.
June 29th, 2007 at 11:00 pm
Let’s hear it for the crazy American media that loves to quote the ‘latest word’ in drug/medicine/food/health studies - and the crazy Americans (if they really exist - maybe the media only pretends that they do) who read and pay attention to the stories, even though all evidence indicates that the ‘latest word’ will change again next month.
On of the most refreshing thing for my about living abroad was the lack of these studies in the news - and the fact that people kind of ate and did what they’d been eating and doing for generations, and that people were pretty healthy.
I’ve spoken with my own doctor on the pregnancy topic. His view is that no pregnancy SSRIs is ideal, but he feels strongly that a baby is healthier if the mom is healthy. And if Mom is healthier with SSRIs, then he’s ok with low doses of it. In his view, low doses of Zoloft or Wellbutrin are of very low concern during pregnancy. But he doesn’t like pregnant women to take Paxil. Not sure about the others.