Pregnant mothers should avoid taking SSRI antidepressants—they are hazardous to the developing fetus, cause withdrawal symptoms in the newborn baby, and induce biochemical and morphological abnormalities in the brain. If pregnant mothers need help with sad or anxious feelings, they should seek counseling or psychotherapy, especially family therapy involving the child’s father, as well as other sources of emotional support.

Five patients with hepatitis C (HCV), three of whom were treated with peginterferon alfa-2 (IFN) and two who were not treated with IFN, developed homicidal ideation (HI) during a 4-year period. Following accepted rules for determining causation, there appeared to be a causal relatedness between IFN use and the development of homicidal ideation for those patients taking IFN. None of these patients attempted a homicidal act while on treatment with IFN, nor in the follow-up period after treatment. The incidence of HI while treated with IFN in our patient population is estimated to be less than 1%. The ability of prescription medication to cause homicidal ideation is reviewed, and legal implications are discussed.

The newer antidepressants frequently cause suicide, violence, and manic-like symptoms of activation or overstimulation, presenting serious hazards to active-duty soldiers who carry weapons under stressful conditions. These antidepressant-induced symptoms of activation can mimic posttraumatic stress disorder and are likely to worsen this common disorder in soldiers, increasing the hazard when they are prescribed to military personnel. Antidepressants should not be prescribed to soldiers during or after deployment.