title: Pregnancy outcomes following exposure to serotonin reuptake inhibitors: a meta-analysis of clinical trials.
abstract: Serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SRIs) are extensively used in management of clinical depression. Reports vary about the risk of these drugs during pregnancy. To determine the risk of exposure to SRIs, we pooled data from multiple clinical studies that investigated obstetrical outcomes in women exposed to this group of drugs during pregnancy. Studies were identified by search of PUBMED, OVID, and SCOPUS databases and the data were derived from 1990 to 2005 (August). Types of outcome investigated were spontaneous abortion, major malformations, cardiovascular malformations, and minor malformations. The criteria for inclusion of studies in this meta-analysis were exposure of women to any therapeutic dosage of SRI (citalopram, fluoxetine, fluvoxamine, paroxetine, sertraline) during pregnancy. Our results find that SRIs do not increase the risk of major, cardiovascular and minor malformations but do increase the risk of spontaneous abortion significantly.
authors.affiliation: Pharmaceutical Sciences Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Roja
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Rahimi
authors.forename: Shekoufeh
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Nikfar
authors.forename: Mohammad
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Abdollahi
mesh_terms: D000022:Abortion, Spontaneous / Q000209:etiology; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D000013:Congenital Abnormalities / Q000209:etiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D018811:Maternal Exposure / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D016017:Odds Ratio; D011247:Pregnancy; D011256:Pregnancy Outcome; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000627:therapeutic use
chemical_list: D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors