Paroxetine HCL
Brand Name: Paxil
Paxil is doctor prescribed medication that
has been approved for use in the United States to treat depression,
panic disorder, social phobia, and obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Paxil's effects can usually be detected by patients within
one to four weeks.
Paxil was introduced into the U.S. market in 1992 by SmithKline
Beecham, now known as Glaxo SmithKline Corporation and has become
one of the best-selling drugs in the country.
Paxil is a drug known as an SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor). "SSRI" stands for Selective Serotonin Re-uptake Inhibitor. Other well known SSRIs are Prozac (Elli Lilly and Company), Zoloft (Pfizer) and Paxil (Glaxo SmithKline). Serotonin is one of hundreds of chemicals that affect brain function. It is not known how SSRIs really work, but because it was once thought that depressed people have low serotonin levels, it was thought that increasing the levels of serotonin may relieve a depressed condition. Serotonin has long been associated with violence and suicide, leaving SSRIs questionable to how they really work.
While serotonin boosters like Paxil can be life-savers for people who suffer from severe depression, panic disorder and obsessive-compulsive illnesses, psychiatrists and doctors acknowledge that not everyone taking them should be on them, the adverse side effects are not fully known and that stopping might be a problem.
Up to 85 percent of patients who take these kinds of drugs may have some type of withdrawal symptoms when they stop. Many doctors and patients also may not know that to end treatment, levels of the drug should be tapered off while under a doctor's care.
Pharmaceutical companies place the responsibility of proper prescribing on the doctor. "The decision about how long a patient should be on treatment and how treatment should be stopped is a highly individual one between the physician and patient," says Brian Jones, a spokesman for Glaxo SmithKline Corporation of Philadelphia, the manufacturer of Paxil. But is this so.....
According to recent research in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, as many as 70 percent of general practitioners and 30 percent of psychiatrists do not know about the side effects of ending serotonin-boosting drugs. Of those who do know, only 20 percent of psychiatrists and 17 percent of general practitioners caution their patients about the proper way to slowly lower the levels of these drugs to come off them.
Recently a jury in a wrongful death suit awarded $8 Million to relatives of a patient taking Paxil who committed suicide and killed 3 others. The claims in that case were that SmithKline Beecham (Glaxo SmithKline Corporation) has known since 1990 that Paxil can produce suicidal and homicidal reactions in a number of patients and failed to provide adequate warnings to doctors or on their label about these reactions. The claims also stated that SmithKline Beecham, now Glaxo Smithkline Corporation (GSK) did not adequately test for the risk of such reactions.
There are now ongoing lawsuits against Glaxo SmithKline Corporation for failure to warn and failure to test for harmful often life-threatening reactions.
Partial list of Paxil Warnings from
the drug maker:
The safety and effectiveness of Paxil in children under 18 years
old have not been established.
Paxil is not addictive. Suddenly discontinuing Paxil may lead to withdrawal symptoms such as confusion, dizziness, sweating, or tremors. Dosage should be gradually tapered when Paxil is discontinued.
Paxil does not usually cause sedation, but patients should not drive or operate heavy machinery until it is known that Paxil does not affect the ability to safely engage in these activities.
For Pregnant Mothers: Paxil is believed to be linked to an increased incidence of Birth Defects >>
Contraindications
Paxil should Not be used for people with an allergy or
hypersensitivity to this drug or any SSRI.
Precautions
Paxil may be used with caution in people with the following conditions:
1. liver or kidney disease lower
dosage may be needed
2. seizures (epilepsy or convulsions) risk of seizures
is increased
3. a history of mania Paxil may activate mania
4. elderly lower dosage may be needed
5. brain disease or damage
6. mental retardation
7. Pregnant Woman
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