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Compulsive Gambling and Mirapex Verdict $8.2 Million

Eddie Farah — Sat, 02 Aug 2008 13:33:08 GMT

A drug given to treat Parkinson’s disease and restless leg syndrome is the focus of a number of trials underway in the District Court of Minneapolis. More than 200 plaintiffs are taking their case forward. But first, three cases will be heard back-to-back to determine the disposition of the remaining cases, including whether there should be a class settlement.

The cases have been consolidated against the drug Mirapex. So far it’s not good news for drug makers Pfizer and Boehringer Ingelheim. This week a federal jury agreed the drug contributes to compulsive gambling and awarded a man $8.2 million.

Many people responding to the story think this is a joke. But it’s not. Compulsive behavior can not only bankrupt you, but destroy marriages and lives. Drug makers denied they knew about the potential side effects, but attorneys for the plaintiffs have shown that the drug makers had knowledge of these compulsive side effects back into the 1990s. Apparently the jury agreed.

Mirapex was approved in 1997, but a warning of compulsive behavior was not issued until 2005. All the while, thousands if not millions of patients, trying to relieve the tremors of Parkinson’s began compulsive behavior. Not only gambling, but shopping, eating, many repetitive behaviors.

More than 10 million prescriptions have been written for Mirapex.

The drug makers blame the compulsive behavior on the patients.

Requip is also in the same class as Mirapex- so-called “dopamine agonists” that stimulate the brain’s movement and coordination centers by overactivating the brain’s pleasure centers. When you stop the drug, the behaviors stop.

With so many people involved in behavior they cannot stop, and no clue that theirs may be a drug-induced state, the drug makers deserve all the scrutiny these trials are now bringing.

They are being charged with liability for design, manufacturing and warning; breach of warranty; and negligence.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Eddie Farah

Grandmother Blames Gardasil In Granddaughter's Death

Eddie Farah — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 23:30:29 GMT

Jessie Ericzon was 17-years-old and about to graduate from high school.

Like many girls her age, she was given the first of the three-shot series of Gardasil, the Merck drug that is supposed to protect young girls from the human papillomavirus, or HPV, that causes two types of cervical cancer and two types of warts.

That was 19 months ago.

Jessie had no health problems, but after the second shot in September 2007 she started to get bad headaches, as well as muscle aches, and joint pain, says her grandmother, Denise Melton. Last February she got the third shot in the series, two days later she was dead.

Her grandmother said after the final shot Jessie said she had a headache and went to bed. That next morning her mother found her on the bathroom floor. "Without a shadow of a doubt, I know that Gardasil is what killed her," says Melton.

An autopsy was inconclusive.

Jessie is not alone. There have been at least 43 reports of deaths following the vaccine and the CDC and FDA have collected about 14,000 adverse events including muscle numbness and paralysis, also known as Guillian-Barre Syndrome, headaches, and fainting.

Let's not forget that Merck is the same company that brought us Vioxx, and knew or should have known that heart attack and strokes would result from the painkiller which was eventually taken off the market.

Even the American Cancer Society says that cervical cancer has declined by 74 percent between 1955 and 1992, largely due to the Pap test.

No one really knows if Gardsil works to prevent cervical cancer, but parents should know that about 80 percent of women are exposed to HPV over their lifetime and their natural immunities fight it off. They should also know that if their child is injured, they have no recourse through the courts. Merck enjoys immunity from liability, as to all vaccine makers.

Melton is going to take Jessie's death as far as she can. She has written to the governor and Congress. She has a license plate that says "One Less" in reference to the Merck campaign by the same name. What she wants one less of, is young woman or girls dying from the drug that is supposed to deliver a cure. #

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Eddie Farah

Number of Yaz and Yasmin Lawsuits Growing

Eddie Farah — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 19:10:56 GMT

In 2007, Susan Galinis of San Francisco was the happy mother of 3-year-old twins, until doctors put her on the Yaz birth control pill. Four weeks and one day later she suffered a stroke.

Today it’s obvious to see part of her skull has been removed. Doctors had to operate to accommodate the brain swelling following her stroke. Her IQ is 77. She has chronic pain and no short-term memory. Her twins have gone to counselling to deal with the differnt mother who returned from the hospital after six months.

Galinas has sued Bayer HealthCare. Her doctors told her it was Yaz that caused her stroke.

Anne Marie Eakins, 34, a history teacher and mother of two is also suing. She developed blood clots in both lungs in 2007 after starting Yaz. That resulted in partial loss of her right lung.

Yaz is the newest sister to drug, Yasmin, both made by Bayer. Ocella birth control is the generic version that is sold by Teva Pharmaceuticals.

All three oral contraceptives are among the most widely used and involve a combination of ethinyl estradiol with a new type of progestin, drospirenone that has been inked to health problems including strokes, heart attacks, deep vein thrombosis, gallbladder disease, pulmonary embolisms, and death.

Our firm is taking in a number of cases by women who have been hurt by these oral contraceptives which should be taken off the market. With six new cases being filed around the country every day and class action lawsuits being launched around the country, it won't be long before the drug is taken off the market.

Until then, women have to suffer.

The go-to drugs for women under the age of 35 generated sales of about $1.8 billion for Bayer last year. A multi-million dollar ad campaign promises the pill is a quality of life treatment that will improve acne and severe premenstrual depression. Bayer had to spend $20 million correcting those ads after the FDA said the company went well beyond what the drug approval.

Bayer stands behind its oral contraceptives and plans to defend itself vigorously against the rising number of lawsuits filed by lawyers and the women they represent, to hopefully soon bring the marketing of these dangerous oral contraceptives to an end.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Eddie Farah

Just One Or Two Drinks Can Be Fatal Mixed With Medication

Eddie Farah — Sat, 09 Aug 2008 17:31:00 GMT

Alcohol and prescription drugs don’t mix according to the latest Public Citizen annual “Worst Pills, Best Pills” report. Even if you are a light drinker, the nonprofit consumer group warns against mixing alcohol with certain medications.

"Worst Pills, Best Pills" lists 273 drugs that shouldn’t be mixed with alcohol including antibiotics, antidepressants, narcotics and anti-ulcer drugs.

"While the more important alcohol-medication interactions are listed in the table, it is not an exhaustive list," writes Dr. Sidney Wolfe of the Health Research Group. Patients should also check with a health care professional before taking alcohol with any drug.

Here are the problems, first - mixing alcohol and certain medications can produce an additive effect. Alcohol is a depressant, and, when it is taken in conjunction with sedative medications, excessive sedation or depression of respiration can result. This additive effect can be lethal.

Another problem - drinking can make medication ineffective.

Also - alcohol can slow down the rate a drug leaves your body, possibly leading to a toxic buildup of drugs. And fourth - some drugs can impair the clearance of alcohol, resulting in high blood alcohol levels.

Patients should always check the labels inside medication and consult with a doctor or pharmacist about alcohol consumption, whether their prescription is long-term or short-term. Permanent damage or death can result otherwise, and a few beers just aren’t worth the risk.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Eddie Farah

Millions of Abbott Glucose Test Strips Recalled

Chrissie Cole — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 11:29:00 GMT

Abbott Laboratories and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a recall of 359 million blood-sugar testing strips because they may give false low readings.

The strips, used by people with diabetes, may not absorb enough blood to give a proper reading, which can lead users to try to raise sugar levels unnecessarily, or to fail to treat elevated glucose levels, the company said in a statement.

Six brands of testing strips are affected by the recall. They were distributed in the United States and Puerto Rico. And include - Precision Xceed Pro, Precision Xtra, MediSense Optium, Optium, OptiumEZ and ReliOn Ultima brands. The affected test strips were manufactured between January and May of 2010.

An estimated twenty-four million Americans are afflicted with diabetes.

To determine if the test strips you have are involved in the recall, call 1-800-448-5234 or visit www.precisionoptiuminfo.com. If it has, call Abbott for a replacement.

For more information, refer to the FDA News Release.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Chrissie Cole

Florida Laid Off Workers Can't Afford Cobra

Eddie Farah — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 12:31:04 GMT

You lose your job and your medical benefits. At least there is COBRA to get you through. That’s the health insurance you can obtain up to 18 months after you lose your job. You must pay for, but at least it keeps you covered.

A new study says that Florida is one of nine states where the cost of COBRA exceeds unemployment benefits – in other words you must dip into your savings at a time you have no job, if you want to afford COBRA health insurance.

For example, COBRA premiums cost an average of $1,037 a month for a family. The unemployment insurance pays $1,013. Do the math.

The report is issued by Families USA and comes from the U.S. Department of Labor.

This is sobering news at a time that the nation’s unemployment rate is 7.2 percent, the highest reported in 15 years.

“COBRA health coverage is great in theory and lousy in reality,” Families USA Executive Director Ron Pollack said during a press conference Friday morning. “For the vast majority of workers who are laid off, they and their families are likely to join the ranks of the uninsured.”

In 41 states, COBRA premiums cost more than three-fourths of unemployment benefits.

The rising cost of health care is the drum beat we hear every day which will have to be addressed by a new administration.

On a personal level, we can all do our part by trying to stay healthy, and not just avoiding disease.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Eddie Farah

Lamictal Epilepsy drug and birth defects

Eddie Farah — Mon, 02 Oct 2006 18:44:50 GMT

U. S. regulators warned Lamictal an epilepsy drug may increase chances of babies being born with a cleft pip or palate when sued during the first three months of pregnancy.

The FDA advises "women who are pregnant or thinking of becoming pregnant should not stop taking Lamictal without talking to a doctor. Lamotrigine is the generic name for Lamictal. This drug is used to control seizures or bipolar disorder. Although testing has been conducted with Health Canada, the FDA advised more data is required. Earlier this week the FDA approved Lamictal to treat grand mal seizures in children two or older and adults.

This medicine has been approved to treat Lennox-Gastaut syndrome.

">http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15060855/from/ET/Epilepsy drug may be linked to birth defect,/a.article">

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Eddie Farah

Patients Need To Be Aware of Medtronic Infuse Use In The Neck

Eddie Farah — Sat, 17 Jan 2009 23:49:00 GMT

Medtronic is facing more trouble over its Infuse Bone Graft.

A Texas woman is reportedly preparing a lawsuit blaming off-label use of Infuse for injuries she suffered after cervical spine surgery. Mary Selke claims that bone formed in her neck and it made it difficult for her to breathe and swallow resulting in more surgery, this time of an emergency nature.

Her physician will also reportedly provide testimony that Medtronic promoted use of the product off-label directly to physicians.

Each year, an estimated half million people undergo spinal surgery to repair and stabilize the spine after experiencing damaged discs or to remedy the condition of scoliosis.

“Infuse Bone Graft” is a biologically engineered liquid that is used to promote bone growth in spine-repair surgery. It’s become a best seller for Medtronic Inc. of Minneapolis, estimated to have brought in $815 million in the fiscal year that ended April 2008, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Infuse is not approved to be used in the neck, but doctors are free to use a medical device off-label at their own discretion.

The family of Shirley Nisbet sued after the California woman died in August 2008. Nisbet had spinal-fusion surgery using Infuse in her neck. After her surgery, the suit says, Ms. Nisbet went into respiratory arrest and a coma and was kept alive by artificial means until she died. That off-label use is being investigated by the U.S. Department of Justice.

Medtronic is supposed to report adverse events to the agency, but a spokesman for the Kaiser Hospital in California, where Ms. Nisbet had her surgery, said it did not report the death to Medtronic because it didn’t consider the product to be the cause of death.

The Minneapolis Firefighters’ Relief Association also filed a class-action shareholder lawsuit against Medtronic in December alleging that the company kept secret that most of its revenue came from off-label use of Infuse and that the device as causing complications.

Litigation may be the only way we get a true picture of the damage done by aggressive marketing to physicians of the off-label use of Infuse.

Meanwhile, it is up to patients to be aware of the serious complications that follow Medtronic’s Infuse, used off-label, in spine surgery in the neck. #

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Eddie Farah

Vytorin Lawsuits Over Low Cholesterol Claims

Eddie Farah — Sat, 08 Nov 2008 00:18:00 GMT

You know the Vytorin commercials – comparing Fettucini Alfredo to your Uncle Alfredo – both are sources of high cholesterol, the ads said. Food and family are both to blame.

Now Merck & Co and partner, Schering-Plough Corp are facing a probe by the Department of Justice about whether the promotion of Vytorin made false claims. Specifically, investigators will seek reimbursements to federal health care programs if the drug makers are found to have made false advertising claims to doctors and patients.

So far 35 state attorneys general are involved in the investigation. And since January, Merck has been served with about 140 class-action lawsuits which also allege consumer fraud. Former customers allege that the companies withheld significant findings from doctors about the medications effectiveness in reducing plaque that leads to heart attack or stroke.

In January, the two companies finally released the results of a long awaited study called Enhance, that showed that price Vytorin didn’t do the job of reducing plaque buildup any better than its second component, a generic cholesterol drug called Zocor which costs about one-third as much.

That led to questions whether the companies deliberately delayed releasing the study's results to boost sales of Vytorin and Zetia, a charge the companies have denied.

Vytorin and its component, Zetia have been blockbuster drugs in the cholesterol market. Their sales last year reached $5.2 billion, but sales are off about 15 percent since last fall.

Those who have filed lawsuits want to have medical monitoring.

Merck says it is cooperating with the DOJ investigators request for information. "We take this matter very seriously," Skip Irvine, a spokesman said to AP. "We're cooperating with the request for information that the Justice Department is seeking."

Meanwhile the commercials about Uncle Alfredo were pulled from the airwaves in January of this year. #

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Eddie Farah

Drug Whistleblower Smeared by FDA

Eddie Farah — Thu, 31 May 2007 16:14:26 GMT

Rarely do we get to look inside the tactics that Big Pharma is not afraid to use when threatened.

The case of the drug, Avandia which is prescribed to treat Type II Diabetes, largely a lifestyle disease that affects up to 20 million Americans. Data collected at the Cleveland Clinic shows Avandia users could have up to a 43% risk of heart attack and a sharp (64%) likelihood of an increase in heart- related disease. Blowing the whistle on the downside of this drug is the head of cardiology from the Cleveland Clinic, Dr. Steven Nissan, who published his findings in the recent issue of The New England Journal of Medicine.

The FDA issued a Safety Alert concerning Avandia, sort of a soft way of saying "consumers watch out." Presumably doctors are paying attention too.

However now, Dr. Nissan says he is being publicly disparaged by a spokesman for the FDA, who previously worked in communications for a large pharmaceutical company. Dr. Nissan tells ABC News that e-mails that accuse the doctor of playing favorites with drug companies are being circulated to health and medical reporters.

"Using taxpayer dollars, a federal agency's press office, rather than responding to the scientific questions that I raised, attempting to smear me individually. It's unacceptable."

What's interesting here is the Chief of Cardiology, works with drug companies to develop new medications -- he's not a natural health, or alternative or even integrative medicine guy who routinely criticize anything Big Pharma. Dr. Nissan is not backing down from acting in the public interest. Good for him!

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Eddie Farah