Valsartan Recall and Potential Lawsuits – October 2018

Earlier this month the FDA announced a major recall of prescription blood pressure and heart drugs which contain the active ingredient valsartan.  You can expect a large number of valsartan lawsuits to follow. Valsartan is an active ingredient that is widely used in a number of brand name and generic drugs used to treat hypertension […]

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Your 14 Questions About Invokana Lawsuits

In August 2018, the FDA warned that sodium-glucosecotransporter-2 (SLGT2) inhibitors such as Invokana can cause a rare but serious infection that could result in an amputation of the genital area. This is a big deal because Invokana is a commonly used diabetes medication. The list of diabetes drugs that have let patients down is long.  […]

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Roundup Cancer Lawsuits | 5 Things You Should Know

The Roundup weed killer cancer lawsuits have gathered a lot of recent attention.  A $289 million verdict will do that. These cases are now pushing along with great steam. U.S. District Judge Vince Chhabria in the Northern District of California is pushing to have MDL cases go before a federal jury by February 2019. Judge […]

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Ovarian Cancer Talcum Powder Lawsuits

Juries have not been impressed with Johnson & Johnson’s Arguments Out of nowhere, talcum powder ovarian cancer cases became the hottest mass tort case.  What happened and where are we now in these lawsuits? The Product and the Big Question For many decades, talcum powder has enjoyed great success as a consumer product. While young […]

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Will Nexium Cause You Kidney Problems?

Patients who experience acid indigestion, heartburn or other stomach ailments often seek relief from their symptoms by taking one or more drugs like Nexium.  Many patients have gotten great relief from heartburn and related symptoms which experience little if any side effects. Those are the happy ending stories. But new research studies indicate that serious […]

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Xarelto Lawsuit Update | From the Horse’s Mouth

I have written pretty extensively on this blog about the various lawsuits pertaining to the anticoagulant, Xarelto. This drug from Bayer is a controversial one, which has produced a history of bleeding injuries. Despite the risks, Xarelto is a best-selling drug, accounting for a huge amount of money flowing into Bayer’s coffers. I love quarterly updates […]

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Bair Hugger Infections/Joint Replacement Lawsuits

3M and one of its subsidiaries, Arizant Healthcare, are facing some heat over their Bair Hugger warming blanket. Lawsuits are starting to be filed, suggesting that the company knew that use of the Bair Hugger could expose surgical patients to the risk of infection. Patients who underwent surgery for hip or knee replacements are at […]

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testosterone

FDA Adds Testosterone Drug Warnings

For months now, we have been writing about the onslaught of information pouring in regarding testosterone therapy and the negative side-effects associated with its use. Testosterone products, prescribed to treat low testosterone (“Low T”) in men, have become popular among young men seeking physical enhancement, as well as older men who want to counter signs […]

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pregnant woman

Zofran Birth Defect Lawsuit Information

The data that links Zofran and birth defects keeps piling up. Lawsuits have been filed against the drug’s manufacturer, GlaxoSmithKline, because they failed to warn pregnant women that the drug can cause injuries to their unborn children when taken during pregnancy. Learn more about how to bring a Zofran lawsuit and how settlements of these […]

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This is just crazy.  It what appears to be a rerun of a rerun, the FDA has once again updated its recall list of valsartan-containing products. If you are currently taking Valsartan, you must check that list to see your medication may or may not be on it. If you are unaware of the previous valsartan recalls, please inform yourself as this will help you become more informed on how these medications may affect your overall health. You must also know about the lawsuits involving NDMA-contaminated valsartan, as it shows what kind of hardships people might experience after taking these tainted drugs.

  1. What was added to the recall list?

The FDA added valsartan-containing products under the brand name RemedyRepack to its recall list. Their tests determined that the valsartan brand contained N-nitrodimethylamine (NDMA), which is considered a carcinogen by both the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the FDA. The pharmaceutical companies Prinston and Solco distribute this brand. Both Prinston and Solco are involved in class action lawsuits throughout the United States that involve their distribution of already recalled valsartan-containing products. This updated recall list highlights the extent of how many valsartan-containing products are contaminated.

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If you have a Ethicon Physicomesh lawsuit, here are 8 things you want to know.

  1. Ethicon Physiomesh

The Physiomesh was introduced in 2010 and had an absorbable film coating on each side of the mesh. It was designed to minimize inflammation and incorporate the patch into the body. Ethicon, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, manufactured the Physiomesh.

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Window tints laws require a significant amount of light to be transmitted in car windows. Once pulled over, a police officer may check to see if your car’s window tints are legal or not. You may ask yourself how police officers can do that. In addition to knowing how to check for too much tint, you must know the window tint laws in both Maryland and D.C.

  1. How do the police determine if a window has too much tint?

The only way to determine if there is an actual violation of the statute is for the officer, after stopping the vehicle, to conduct a test utilizing a “two-piece window tint meter.” When observing a vehicle without the benefit of such a device there is no definitive way to determine if the window tint on a car is in violation of the statute other than by eyeballing it.

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Recent findings from the Trial Assigning Individualized Options for Treatment (Rx), also known as the TAILORx trial, show that chemotherapy is not beneficial to the most commonly found form of breast cancer. Sponsored by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), researchers found that chemotherapy does not benefit 70 percent of women with estrogen receptor-positive, HER2-egnative, axillary lymph node-negative breast cancer. Hormone therapy combined with chemotherapy is not more beneficial than treating breast cancer with hormone therapy alone. Researchers released this data at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s annual meeting this year in Chicago.

Details of the study

vaginal mesh tragediesBeginning in 2006, researchers conducted this study to examine the effectiveness of hormone therapy alone compared to using both hormone therapy and chemotherapy in treating breast cancer. The study divided women into two groups. The groups were based on the individual woman’s genes that determine their risk of cancer recurrence. This would be determined by a molecular test that examines their tumors. It is known as the Oncotype DX Breast Recurrence Score. The test examines 21 genes associated with breast cancer recurrence. Each participant’s tumors were analyzed using this test. They were each assigned a risk score that was on a scale from 0-100. The higher the score, the higher the recurrence risk. Women who had a score of 0-10 received hormone therapy only. Women who had a score of 26 and above were considered high-risk and given chemotherapy. Women who had a score of 11-25 were randomly assigned to receive just hormone therapy or hormone therapy and chemotherapy.

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In October 2018, settlements in the AbbVies AndroGel lawsuits FINALLY appear ready to resolve.  The drug company and plaintiffs lawyers are dotting the i’s and crossing the t’s on a settlement agreement that would resolve thousands of testosterone cases.

Lawsuits had been filed claiming that the makers of Androgel, AbbVie, failed to warn thousands of men about the potential side-effects of the drug. These side-effects include heart attacks, blood clots, stroke, and even sudden death in extraordinary cases. As the litigationandrogel-lawsuit wheels are starting to turn here, AbbVie is trying to gum them up with objections to slow down the process.  You could say everything is going according to plan….

Androgel Lawsuits

If you are reading this you probably already know this but let’s recap where were are. Currently, there are about 7,000 lawsuits against AbbVie percolating around the federal court system. The various suits allege that the makers of Androgel, AbbVie, neglected to warn thousands of men about the serious side effects of the “Low-T” treatment drug. This drug has certainly been a big hit, understandably so considering that it promises men physical enhancement to counteract the forces of aging. But thousands of lawsuits -allege that low-T drugs can lead to heart attack, stroke, pulmonary embolism, deep vein thrombosis, or other injuries, prompting men across the U.S. to sue AbbVie and the other manufacturers for not being adequately warned of the risks.

That really is what this is about.  No one — at least not many people — are calling for a low-T recall.  The risk might outweigh the benefit for some although probably not many of us.  It is about giving patients and doctors a choice. Tell us what can happen and let us make the call.  They are giving this warning now.  They should have given it to us before.  That is what these lawsuits are about.

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The gadolinium contrast class action lawsuits took a hit last week when the MDL Panel denied class certification which would have consolidated all of the federal court cases under one roof.  But I’m convinced there will be an MDL class action in the gadolinium contrast cases in the next year.  These deposition disease cases are still heating up in spite of this setback.

If you are a victim or a lawyer getting calls from clients, here are 7 things you need to know about the gadolinium contrast litigation.

  1. What are GBCAs?

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  1. What is Zostavax?

Zostavax is a single shot vaccine that helps prevent herpes zoster, also known as the shingles. It is a weakened live form of the virus, meant to train the immune system to fight it off. Zostavax is primarily meant for individuals 50 years and older. Developed by the pharmaceutical company Merck & Company, the FDA approved it in 2006. It is a stronger version of Varivax, another shingles’ vaccine also developed by Merck.

  1. What are the shingles?

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The Washington Post wrote an article Monday underscoring fact that is well-known to lawyers handling malpractice cases in Maryland: doctors struggle to accurately read tests that determine medical conditions. Unfortunately for patients, this can have serious long-term consequences.

Most of these errors do not lead to malpractice cases because they show false positives.  Sometimes these are malpractice cases because the unnecessary test is the harm — we tried that very case in Baltimore County last year and our client received a $1.45 million verdict.

Below are a few examples that I think really highlight the consequences of this problem.  Each of these following examples and studies highlights the need for us to find a path to help doctors to improve their ability to assess tests more accurately.

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Earlier this month the FDA announced a major recall of prescription blood pressure and heart drugs which contain the active ingredient valsartan.  You can expect a large number of valsartan lawsuits to follow.

Valsartan is an active ingredient that is widely used in a number of brand name and generic drugs used to treat hypertension and heart failure.  It was recently discovered that when valsartan is manufactured in a certain way it can contain a dangerous impurity called N-nitrosodimethylamine (NMDA).

NMDA is a known human carcinogen.  The valsartan medications containing the dangerous NMDA impurity have been linked to a specific pharmaceutical ingredient distributed by a Chinese company — Zhejiang Huahai Pharmaceuticals.  Zhejiang Huahai was manufacturing the contaminated valsartan component and selling it to several U.S. pharmaceutical companies including Teva Pharmaceuticals Ltd. and Solco Healthcare.  Zhejiang Huahai discovered NMDA impurities in its product which eventually led to the FDA recall.

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A recently published California-based survey on mothers found that health care providers do not usually listen to mothers about their birth preferences. Even worse, these providers seem to listen to black women the least. This suggests that black women in America do not receive the same quality of care as their white counterparts. A University of Virginia study seems to cement this case. It concluded that racial biases among white health care professionals are directly related to the standard of care provided to black patients.

I’m writing about this because this problem flows into medical malpractice cases where the victims are disporportionately black.

Results of the California Survey

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