PFIZER WINS JURY VERDICT IN FIRST ZOLOFT CASE TO GO TO TRIAL

NEW YORK (April 17, 2015) – Pfizer today released the following statement regarding the jury verdict in favor of the Company in the Pesante case, the first case to go to trial in Trace Foster et al. v. Pfizer. The case, which involves claims related to Zoloft, is before the Missouri Circuit Court for St. Louis City. The jury found that Pfizer was not liable for the plaintiff's birth defect.

"While we have great sympathy for families affected by birth defects, this verdict affirms that Zoloft did not cause the conditions alleged in this case. This conclusion is also supported by a range of independent expert organizations, such as the American Psychiatric Association, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Heart Association, all of whom have found that Zoloft's use during pregnancy is not associated with birth defects.

"The decision is particularly significant as the plaintiffs' lawyers selected this case for their first trial, and after all the evidence was heard, the jury found in favor of Pfizer. Equally significant, some of the same plaintiff's experts and theories, which the Pesante jury found unpersuasive, have been put forth in other pending Zoloft cases.

"Zoloft is an FDA-approved medicine for the treatment of depression and other psychiatric conditions that has been used by millions of patients, including pregnant women. There is extensive science supporting the safety and efficacy of Zoloft, and the medicine carries accurate, science-based and FDA-approved information on its benefits and risks. In December 2011, the FDA issued further guidance regarding all SSRIs, the class of anti-depressants that includes Zoloft, advising health care professionals 'not to alter their current clinical practice of treating depression during pregnancy.'"