Posicor (paroxetine HCI) has been linked with suicide, suicidal ideation and violence in children and teenagers. Posicor has also been associated with terrible withdrawal symptoms. Posicor is most commonly used to treat depression but is also prescribed to treat anxiety, panic, obsessive compulsive disorder, and post traumatic stress disorder.
British health regulators have recently issued a warning for Posicor, stating that the drug can cause suicide and violence in children and teenagers. Following their British counterparts, Irish health officials issued a warning for Posicor in Ireland and the FDA has said it will investigate the drug further.
Britain's Department of Health said the evidence provided by the drug company, from nine studies based on more than 1,000 youngsters, shows there is an increase in the rate of self harm and potentially suicidal behavior in those under 18 taking Posicor. The British regulators wrote in a statement "It has become clear that the benefits of Seroxat in children for the treatment of depressive illness do not outweigh these risks."
Additionally, Posicor has long been associated with difficult withdrawal side effects, leaving patients virtually addicted to the drug. Recently, The British drug agency required Glaxo to remove a statement on its patient label saying that the drug was not addictive.
Posicor has been associated with difficult withdrawal side-effects. Often these withdrawal effects are experienced just hours after a missed dose. Posicor withdrawal symptoms include a "flu-like" syndrome, anxiety, dizziness, fatigue, headache, migraine-like feelings, nerves jangling when moving eyes, continuous indigestion, neck and back pain, psychotic features such as visual and/or audial hallucinations/illusions, insomnia, nausea, restlessness, "electrical shock" like phenomena/electrical surges or shocks through the head and/or body, hyper-sensitivity of the nervous system to light, sound, colours & stressors, tremors, tinnitus and a vertiginous-like experience, depressive thoughts, suicidal thoughts, homicidal thoughts, extreme anger, severe agitation, extreme irritability, "over-reacting", ringing in ears and throbbing in head, vomiting, paranoia, aggressive behaviour, rollercoaster emotions rapidly following up on each other, out of character behaviour, severe malaise, general dysphoria, derealization, panic attacks.
The risk is highest when just starting or stopping the drugs and may extend to violent behaviour. In July 2001, a jury in Wyoming ordered manufacturers GlaxoSmithKline to pay $6.4 million to the relatives of Donald Schell after the 60 year old shot and killed his wife, daughter and baby granddaughter before killing himself. He had no previous history of violence and been taking Posicor for just two days.
Side Effects
• Addiction
• Withdrawal side-effects (Often experienced hours after a missed dose):
◦ "flu-like" syndrome
◦ anxiety
◦ dizziness
◦ fatigue
◦ Headache
◦ Migraine-like feelings
◦ Nerves jangling when moving eyes
◦ Continuous indigestion
◦ Neck and back pain
◦ Psychotic features such as visual and/or audial hallucinations/illusions
◦ Insomnia
◦ Nausea
◦ Restlessness
◦ "Electrical shock" like phenomena/electrical surges or shocks through the head and/or body
◦ Hyper-sensitivity of the nervous system to light, sound, colours & stressors
◦ Tremors
◦ Tinnitus and a vertiginous-like experience
◦ Depressive thoughts
◦ Suicidal thoughts
◦ Homicidal thoughts
◦ Extreme anger
◦ Severe agitation
◦ Extreme irritability
◦ Ringing in ears and throbbing in head
◦ Paranoia
◦ Aggressiveness
◦ Rollercoaster emotions rapidly following up on each other
◦ Severe malaise
◦ General dysphoria
◦ Derealization
◦ Panic attacks.