Club Foot Seen as Potential Paxil Birth Defect

Paxil Side Effects

Just like other antidepressants that are similar to it, Paxil has its own list of potential side effects.Paxil has been known to cause heart defects in the fetus, women who are in their first trimester are the most at risk for this type of birth defects. However the most common birth defect that has been seen in Paxil patients is Club foot.

When a child is born with a club foot congenital talipes equinovarus(CTEV),he or she has a congenital deformity involving one foot or both. The foot or feet affected appear to be rotated internally at the ankle. Currently there are to groups that TEV can be classified in: Postural TEV or Structural TEV.Without treatment, persons afflicted often appear to walk on theirankles, or on the sides of their feet. This is a common birth defect as it has been shown to occur in about one in every 1,000 live births. In about 50% of club foot cases are bilateral. Males are more likely to be affected by the birth defect in a ratio of 2 to 1.

The treatment for children born with club foot should being immediately after birth. The pediatric orthopedic surgeon will manipulate the foot and cast it on a weekly basis to try to correct the clubfoot deformity. This manipulation technique is called "The Ponseti Method," named after the doctor who has popularized this treatment. This kind of manipulation technique is is called "The Ponseti Method," named after the doctor who has popularized this treatment. During the Ponseti Method theposition and timing of the casts is deliberate, and intended to stretch and rotate the foot into a proper position. Each week, the casts are replaced in a process called serial casting. It are these casts which help in the casts slowly correcting the position of the clubfoot.In about one half of cases, this manipulation is sufficient to correct the clubfoot deformity. In some cases, a surgical procedure may be necessary, during surgery, the doctor will release, or loosen, the tight Achilles tendon to allow the foot to assume its normal position. After the casts are removed, the patient will usually have to wear nighttime braces until he or she is two years old.

While it has been shown that club foot is one of the more common potential Paxil Birth Defects, there treatments available to those affected by it. One should always consult their doctor before starting to take Paxil for signs and symptoms of depression.