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THE Government has been called on to investigate the "soaring number" of reported side-effects from the UK‚s most widely prescribed antidepressant.
Around 100 people have gathered in London for the first meeting of the Seroxat Users Group.
Seroxat is an anti-depressant licensed to treat episodes of mild to moderate depression, as well as anxiety disorders.
But the Seroxat Users Group said thousands of people around the world had reported side-effects including physical problems and suicidal feelings.
In America, GlaxoSmithKline, the manufacturer of Seroxat, made a confidential out-of-court settlement with the family of 61-year-old Donald Schell.
Mr. Schell killed his wife, daughter and granddaughter, then committed suicide, the day after taking Paxil - the US name for Seroxat.
The Seroxat Users Group today called on the Department of Health to look into "the soaring number of reported serious side effects" .
Mark Harvey, of Hugh James Solicitors, representing the group, also called on GSK "to carry out in-depth research into exactly who should be prescribed this drug".
The group says some of the worst problems occur when trying to come off the drug, even though GSK maintains that Seroxat is non-addictive.
A spokeswoman for GlaxoSmithKline said today: "Extensive clinical trials and more than 100 million patient treatments worldwide since 1991 have continued to show Seroxat to be an effective and generally well-tolerated treatment for depression and anxiety disorders."
She said Seroxat was not addictive and there was no scientific or clinical evidence to suggest it caused dependence.
A spokesman for the Medicines Control Agency said: "We have reviewed the safety of this family of antidepressants on numerous occasions and their safety profile remains favourable."
©2002 scotsman.com
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