Suicide Effexor & Zoloft* 06/10/2004 Nebraska 11 Year Old Hangs Himself: Lawsuit
 
 Summary:<br><br><!--StartFragment -->Paragraphs 9 &amp; 10 read: &quot;The lawsui<strong>t states that Jacob began taking Zoloft on Sept. 9, 2002, on the recommendation of Cannon&quot;. <br /><br /></strong>&quot;The lawsuit alleges that <u>after Jacob began taking the medication &quot;his <strong>behavior and symptoms</strong> </u><strong><u>worsened to include intensified agitation, suicidal desires, hysterical behavior, irritability, hostility, mania, restlessness, decreased ability to control impulses and chronic refusal to go to school.&quot; <br /></u><br />Paragraphs 11 through 13 read: &quot;The lawsuit states that Jacob&#39;s <u>Zoloft dosage was increased three times</u> between Sept. 17 and Oct. 2 on the recommendations of Cannon, Dr. Cassidy and Dr. Coy.&quot; <br /><br />&quot;Then &#39;on or about Oct. 8,&#39; Dr. Cassidy advised the gradual decrease of the Zoloft dosage and prescribed the drug Effexor.&quot; <br /><br />&quot;Two days later, Jacob was found dead in his parents&#39; basement, having hanged himself.&quot; <br /><br /><br /></strong><a href="http://www.omaha.com/index.php?u_np=0&amp;u_pg=1642&amp;u_sid=1222761">http://www.omaha.com/index.php?u_np=0&amp;u_pg=1642&amp;u_sid=1222761<br /><br /><br /></a>Published Wednesday<br />October 6, 2004<br /><br />Family sues drug firms, doctors over suicide<br /><br /><strong>BY KEVIN COLE<br /></strong>&nbsp; <br /><br />WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER <br /><br />An Omaha family filed a lawsuit Tuesday in Douglas County District Court alleging negligence by two drug companies and three health-care professionals in the death of their 11-year-old son. <br /><br />David and Debra Jackson contend that the Oct. 10, 2002, suicide of their son, Jacob, was the result of side effects from the antidepressant drugs Zoloft and Effexor. <br /><br />Spokeswomen for Children&#39;s Hospital and Immanuel Medical Center declined to comment. Calls seeking comment from Pfizer Inc. and Wyeth Pharmaceuticals Inc. were not immediately returned. <br /><br />On Sept. 14, the FDA&#39;s medical advisory group decided that antidepressants should come with a &quot;black box warning&quot; that they can &quot;spur suicidal behavior in children and teenagers.&quot; <br /><br />The lawsuit alleges that Pfizer Inc. &quot;failed to adequately test, evaluate and otherwise study the pediatric effects of Zoloft before marketing it to the public.&quot; <br /><br />Also named as defendants are Sharon S. Cannon, Ph.D., and Dr. Michelle M. Cassidy of Children&#39;s Hospital; and Dr. Michael L. Coy of Alegent Health-Immanuel Medical Center. <br /><br />The lawsuit alleges that none of the defendants warned that &quot;Jacob should be watched closely for signs that his condition was getting worse.&quot; <br /><br />Jacob, according to the lawsuit filed by attorney Andrew J. Hilger, was being treated for depression following the deaths of a neighborhood friend and his grandfather. <br /><br />The lawsuit states that Jacob began taking Zoloft on Sept. 9, 2002, on the recommendation of Cannon. <br /><br />The lawsuit alleges that after Jacob began taking the medication &quot;his behavior and symptoms worsened to include intensified agitation, suicidal desires, hysterical behavior, irritability, hostility, mania, restlessness, decreased ability to control impulses and chronic refusal to go to school.&quot; <br /><br />The lawsuit states that Jacob&#39;s Zoloft dosage was increased three times between Sept. 17 and Oct. 2 on the recommendations of Cannon, Dr. Cassidy and Dr. Coy. <br /><br />Then &quot;on or about Oct. 8,&quot; Dr. Cassidy advised the gradual decrease of the Zoloft dosage and prescribed the drug Effexor. <br /><br />Two days later, Jacob was found dead in his parents&#39; basement, having hanged himself. <br /><br />Contact the Omaha World-Herald <a href="http://www.omaha.com/index.php?u_pg=1116">newsroom</a><br /> 
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