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Study Finds Stronger Link Between Paxil And Suicide

August 22, 2005

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Norwegian researchers are raising new warnings about the anti-depressant drug, Paxil, saying it is associated with a higher risk of suicide in adults. The drug, which is currently not approved for use by children, has been the subject of 16 scientific reviews, which were analyzed for the Norwegian study.

The review, published in the BMC Medicine journal, compared Paxil, manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline, with a placebo. The authors say they found seven suicide attempts among those taking the drug, compared to one for those taking the placebo.

Paxil has long been a source of concern by physicians, who have expressed fears it leads patients to have suicidal thoughts.

In 2003 the Food and Drug Administration began investigating reports of a possible increased risk of suicidal thinking and suicide attempts in children and adolescents under the age of 18 treated with the drug Paxil. At that time, the FDA said Paxil should not be used to treat children with a major depressive disorder.

Currently, Paxil is approved for use in adults for the treatment of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Major Depressive Disorder, Panic Disorder, Social Anxiety Disorder, Generalized Anxiety Disorder, and Post-traumatic Stress Disorder. At the time, the FDA said there was no evidence that Paxil is associated with an increased risk of suicidal thinking in adults.

In 2004 New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer filed a lawsuit against GlaxoSmithKline for concealing important information about the safety and efficacy of Paxil. The lawsuit claimed the company engaged in repeated and persistent fraud by concealing and failing to disclose to physicians information about the drug, and its possible side effects.

Indeed, anti-depressant drugs in general remain suspect when it comes to suicide. Earlier this year health regulators in Europe issued a warning that Paxil, Prozac and several other anti-depressants were a possible suicide risk for children, and that young patients should avoid them.

The Norwegian researchers say their study should convince regulators to more closely monitor all anti-depressants.

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