Yet another study conducted on Paxil’s side effects has indicated that the drug can cause an increased risk of suicidal behavior in severely depressed patients.
This newest study, which was published in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, ironically was funded by the makers of Paxil, GlaxoSmithKline. The study showed that more patients considered committing suicide when taking Paxil than when taking placebos.
In this double-blind study, the researchers took information from 14,911 patients. About 0.34 percent of Paxil patients that were depressed while on Paxil either considered or attempted suicide. Only 0.05 percent of the depressed patients that were taking placebos had that experience. One thing that has to be mentioned is that there was no statistical difference between Paxil patients and suicide risks and the general population taking the drug. The researchers actually thought they saw an anomaly in the information.
Paxil and other SSRI medications like it have become very controversial as they have been associated with various life-threatening side effects. Some of the side effects include aggressive behavior, suicidal thoughts, suicide and confusion. Now many people are accusing Glaxo of hiding information regarding these side effects from the public. Lawsuits have been settled to the tune of more than $1 billion so far, with no end in sight for the drug company.
More and more research has been done to prove that Paxil and other SSRI medications pose more threat and danger than benefit. Research is even showing that taking Paxil during the first trimester of pregnancy can cause birth defects, but Glaxo still holds to its tale of no wrongdoing. However, the risks of taking SSRI meds like Paxil seem to far outweigh the benefits. In fact, one study claims that Paxil likely doesn’t work any better than placebos. Too much information is coming out against Paxil to be ignored or denied for long.
