A jury in Philadelphia has ruled that UK pharma company GlaxoSmithKline Plc (GSK) failed to adequately warn doctors and mothers-to-be of the risks of taking the antidepressant Paxil (paroxetine) when pregnant.

The panel has awarded US$2.5 million in compensation to the family of three-year-old Lyam Kilker, who was born with hearts defects which his mother attributed to the drug.

The Daily Telegraph reports that the jury at the state court in Philadelphia deliberated for around seven hours over the course of two days to reach the decision.

GSK – which manufactures the drug as Seroxat in the UK – has said it will appeal against the ruling.

The case is the first of around 600 expected to come to trial. The drug was approved for use in the US in 1992 – last year, sales generated 2.1 per cent ($942) of GSK’s income.

The company said in a statement following the hearing:

‘While we sympathise with Lyam Kilker and his family, the scientific evidence does not establish that exposure to Paxil during pregnancy caused his condition.’

Lawyers for the family said that the ‘first win’ of such cases was always ‘huge’ – especially when a jury rules that the drug ‘caused the injury’.

The jury decided by a 10-2 verdict that GSK ‘negligently failed to warn’ the doctor treating Lyam’s mother about the risks of taking Paxil while pregnant – and concluded that the drug was the ‘factual cause’ of the child’s heart condition.

GSK is fighting other claims in the US, as well as claims in the UK and Canada that Paxil can cause homicidal and suicidal feelings in patients. The company has already settled some cases of suicide out-of-court for undisclosed sums.

In 2004, the company also settled a claim with the State of New York for $2.5 million, regarding the claim that research findings were suppressed because they indicated one side effect of the drug might be an increase in the risk of suicide among younger patients. Part of the settlement required the company to disclose the findings of the research.

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