Ziprasidone as a possible cause of cleft palate in a newborn

Use of antipsychotic medication during the entire course of pregnancy in patients suffering from schizophrenia is frequently necessary as discontinuation of therapy can lead to relapse of the illness which can be far more severe for the mother, but also for the fetus. That is the case why third generation antipsychotics, so called atypical antipsychotics, are also being used during the pregnancy, but their effects are not fully researched. Use of ziprasidone as a third generation antipsychotic, and its effects during the pregnancy in patients suffering from various mental illnesses is very rarely described in scientific literature. There is even fewer information regarding eventual adverse events of ziprasidone in newborn babies of mothers that have been treated with ziprasidone during the entire course of pregnancy. This paper will be based around a case report of a female patient suffering from schizophrenia who has been treated with ziprasidone during the entire course of her pregnancy and whose newborn baby was diagnosed with a cleft palate (palatoschisis) at the time of birth.