According to About Lawsuits, the US Food and Drug Administration has issued a warning about birth defect risks associated with Diflucan, an antifungal drug used for treatment of yeast infections and meningitis. The drug safety communication issued by the FDA says that high doses of Diflucan has been associated with a number of rare and distinct birth defects and congenital anomalies.

The FDA had changed high-dose Diflucan treatments, 400-800 milligrams daily, from a Category C to Category D pregnancy drug label, meaning the drug has been shown to have positive human evidence of a risk of birth defects. The low dose Diflucan has not changed and remains Category C.

Diflucan is a prescription drug introduced by Pfizer used to treat yeast infections of the vagina, mouth, esophagus and other organs. It is also used to treat meningitis strains and can be used as a yeast infection preventative in patients undergoing cancer treatments before receiving a bone marrow transplant.

Studies have linked Diflucan to birth defects when taken in the first trimester, at the time when most women do not know they are pregnant, and when most birth defects seem to occur. Diflucan birth defects include abnormal head, skull, facial defects, cleft palate, cleft lip, bowing of the thigh bones, thin ribs, long bones, muscle weakness, joint deformities and congenital heart disease at birth.

Cappolino Dodd Krebs LLP. – birth trauma lawyers

According to Seedol, an European study conducted at the University of Groningen in the Netherlands has shown that Depakote increases the risks of several types of birth injuries such as spina bifida, heart defects and craniosynostosis by up to twelve times. The European researchers concluded that women who used Abbott Laboratories anti-seizure drug during their first trimester may have unknowingly increased the risk of birth defects in their infants.

Depakote’s birth defects have caused the U.S. Food & Drug Administration to issue a Depakote black box warning in 2006 and have lead to numerous birth injury lawsuits. Birth injury lawyers have argued that Abbott Laboratories failed to warn mothers about the increased risk of Depakote-related brain injury and may be liable for economic damages, non-economic damages and possibly punitive damages in cases where an infant has suffered permanent birth defects.

The European study examined nearly 100,000 pregnancies and found that the following birth defects risks increase when a fetus is exposed to Depakote:

Spina Bifida. The risk of developing Spina Bifida increased by as much as 12 times after Depakote use.

Atrial Septal Heart Defect. The risk of developing an atrial septal heart defect condition doubled after Depakote use.

Cleft Palate. The risk of developing a cleft palate increased by as much as five times after Depakote use.

Hypospadias. The risk of developing hypospadias, a defect in the placement of a boy’s urethra, increased as much as five times after Depakote use.

Craniosynostosis. The risk of developing craniosynostosis, a condition where a child’s skull bones close too early, increased as much as seven times after Depakote use.

Cappolino Dodd Krebs LLP. – birth trauma lawyers