Common antidepressants increase risk of postpartum hemorrhage

Women taking a common antidepressant late in their pregnancy were 60 per cent more likely to experience postpartum hemorrhage, a major cause of medical complications in childbirth. Researchers at the University of B.C. found that more than one in 10 women taking selective serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitors (SNRIs) — especially Effexor, also known as venlafaxine — suffered excessive bleeding.