Glaxo Ignored Paxil’s Birth-Defect Risks, Lawyer Says

-Bloomberg

10/09/2009 - GlaxoSmithKline Plc officials intentionally ignored the possibility that the Paxil antidepressant caused birth defects, a lawyer said in closing arguments of a trial over the drug.

Glaxo researchers never followed up on studies showing Paxil posed a birth-defect risk for fear of harming sales, Sean Tracey, lawyer for a family suing over the drug, told jurors yesterday in state court in Philadelphia.

The London-based drugmaker “made a concerted effort” not to study Paxil’s links to birth defects, Tracey said. Glaxo executives sought to “avoid doing studies that would have revealed the truth about their drugs,” he said.

The trial is the first of more than 600 cases alleging that Glaxo, the U.K.’s largest drugmaker, knew Paxil caused birth defects and hid those risks to increase profits. The drug, approved for U.S. use in 1992, generated about $942 million in sales last year, or 2.1 percent of Glaxo’s total revenue.

The family of Lyam Kilker claims Glaxo withheld information from consumers and regulators about Paxil’s risks and failed to properly test the drug. Lyam’s mother, Michelle David, blames Paxil for causing her son’s life-threatening heart defects.

‘Set Sympathy Aside’

Glaxo’s lawyers contend the company isn’t liable for Lyam’s heart defects and acted responsibly in testing Paxil and updating safety information.

Jurors must “set sympathy aside and decide this case fairly,” Chilton Varner, one of Glaxo’s lawyers, told the panel in her closing statement today.

Arguments that Glaxo “has acted improperly or unethically” in its testing and marketing of Paxil “don’t ring true,” Varner added.

The company’s provision for legal and other nontax disputes as of June 30 was 1.7 billion pounds ($2.8 billion), Glaxo officials said in a July 22 regulatory filing that didn’t mention the Paxil litigation.

Glaxo’s American depositary receipts, each representing two ordinary shares, rose 37 cents to $39.68 in New York Stock Exchange composite trading at 12:30 p.m. Glaxo rose 4 pence to 1,235 pence in London trading.

The case is Kilker v. SmithKline Beecham Corp. dba GlaxoSmithKline, 2007-001813, Court of Common Pleas, Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania ( Philadelphia).

If you are currently taking Paxil and have concerns about its safetly, you should consult with your doctor regarding your treatment options. Under no circumstances should you discontinue taking any medication, including Paxil, without first consulting with your doctor. For Paxil legal information contact the Paxil Attorneys of Ennis & Ennis, P.A. by filling out our free Paxil case evaluation form or by calling the toll-free number listed below.