Lexapro (generic name: escitalopram oxalate) is perscribed to treat major depression. Newer antidepressants known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), such as Lexapro, have come under recent scrutiny. In the United States, use of antidepressants for patients under 18 years has not been approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), with the exception of Prozac. This means that the healthcare professional who prescribes or dispenses these drugs for children and adolescents, as well as the pharmaceutical company that promotes this "off-label" (unapproved) use, knowingly take a risk with the patient's safety.
Antidepressants are widely suspected of contributing to suicidal and/or violent behaviors, especially in children. This point of view has recently been adopted by the FDA, somewhat more slowly than its British counterpart, the Medicines Control Agency. The FDA asked makers of SSRIs to include warnings that children and adults might become more depressed or suicidal while taking them, and that close supervision—particularly at the start of treatment—is required. Forest Pharmaceutical, the manufacturer of Lexapro, continues to downplay the drug's risk. Lexapro's potential side effects include:
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Insomnia
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Diarrhea
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Dry mouth
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Somnolence (sleepiness or drowsiness)
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Dizziness
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Increased sweating
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Constipation
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Fatigue
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Indigestion
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Ejaculation disorder (male)
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Decreased libido (decreased sex drive) (both male and female)
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Impotence (male)
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Influenza (flu)-like symptoms
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Decreased appetite
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Rhinitis (runny nose)
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Sinusitis (inflammation of the sinuses)
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Possible impairment of fertility (disability to get pregnant)
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Danger of birth defects for pregnant women
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Passing of drug to nursing babies
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Danger to patients with history of mania
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Danger to patients with history of seizures
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Danger to patients with suicidal tendencies (note: Drugs such as Lexapro have been present in numerous suicide cases, although drug companies have denied the drugs as causes)
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Interference with operation of machinery, including automobiles
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Impairment of judgment
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Priapism (males) (persistent, usually painful erection of the penis, especially as a consequence of disease and not related to sexual arousal)
