Celexa Not Associated With Increased Risk Of Birth Defects, Study Says

Main Category: Pregnancy / Obstetrics
Article Date: 21 Dec 2005 - 5:00 PDT

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Pregnant women who take the antidepressant citalopram, known by the brand name of Celexa, during pregnancy do not increase their risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes, including birth defects and neonatal complications, according to a Canadian study published in the December issue of the American Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Reuters UK reports (Reuters UK, 12/16). Anna Sivojelezova and colleagues from the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto and the University of Toronto evaluated three groups of 132 pregnant women who contacted Motherisk, a teratogen information center in Toronto, with questions about the safety of citalopram use during pregnancy. One hundred and twenty-five women took citalopram during at least the first trimester, and 71 women continued taking the drug throughout pregnancy. The researchers reported that 114 women had live births, 14 miscarried, two underwent abortions, and two experienced stillbirths. Of the 108 live-birth infants whose mothers were exposed to citalopram in the first trimester, one male infant was born with a "major" birth defect. Fetal survival rates, average birthweights and gestational periods were statistically consistent among the three groups (Sivojelezova et al., AJOG, 12/19). The researchers reported no additional birth defect risk for women who took citalopram in the third trimester. However, the risk of admission to the neonatal intensive care unit increased fourfold for infants exposed to the drug in the third trimester compared with those who were not exposed. Researchers said this increase might be because of the late exposure to the drug, but more research needs to be done to prove this theory. The authors wrote, "In summary, our findings do not support an association between citalopram [and] any major teratogenic risk in humans" (Reuters UK, 12/16).

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