Slater Slater Schulman LLP » drug litigation

Should you be on Plavix?

admin — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 22:35:04 +0000

Should you be taking Plavix? Dr. Archer Georgiou gives some timely advice to Fox news about the dangers of taking Plavix without proper information. For about half the population, taking this popular drug carries great risk with no or minimal benefit to alternatives. A simple genetic test can determine whether you (or your loved ones) are part of the 50% for whom alternatives should be strongly considered. Unfortunately, many doctors all too easily prescribe the blockbuser drug without doing this test.

Dr. Georgiou’s advice? “Demand (don’t request) the genetic blood test to determine whether Plavix can be metabolized.“

Watch the entire video to learn more: http://www.myfoxtwincities.com/dpp/buzz/Plavix-Prescription-Perspective-Dr.-Georgiou-nov-29-2011

Johnson & Johnson CEO Weldon: “We’ve learned our lesson”. Have they?

admin — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 01:32:38 +0000

In an AP interview with J&J head honcho William Weldon prior to his upcoming presentation to investors at the his shareholders’ meeting, the CEO of one of America’s most storied companies defended his company’s honor, holding the line that the problems caused by the many, many recalls of its products are mostly behind them. The myriad of problems were well chronicled in this month’s excellent BusinessWeek article, aptly titled “Johnson & Johnson’s Quality Catastrophe“. All told, the documented recalls and problematic devices, drugs, and children’s medicines have affected the lives of thousands. These problems range from a smelly jar of kid’s medicines to life-destroying crippling of active seniors. Specifically, these troubles include:

DePuy ASR and ASR-XL Systems: J&J’s (through it’s DePuy subsidiary) metal-on-metal hip implant lines ASR and ASR-XL are just the most recent (and possibly most devastating) recall to affect the Johnson & Johnson legacy. Defective hips were inserted into possibly tens of thousands of Americans — many after J&J had already been forced to halt using these devices in other countries due to serious safety concerns. So while J&J were forced to act responsibly in other countries, Americans continued to get the faulty hip systems. Estimates put the potential early failure rate of these hip replacement models at almost 50%. To further complicate matters, studies suggest that a likely cause of these failures is that the metal-on-metal device rubs the wrong way, resulting in metal shavings entering the bloodstream. These metals, which include carcinogenic cobalt and chromium, threaten ASR and ASR-XL recipients with metallosis, cobalt poisoning, chromium poisoning, and even cancer. Learn more about DePuy ASR and ASR-XL lawsuits here.

Levaquin: J&J’s (through its subsidiary Ortho-McNeil) blockbuster antibiotic Levaquin is at the center of thousands of lawsuits. The drug, which is a very strong and very effective antibiotic, has been increasingly used as a “first-defense” medication, when other antibiotics would have sufficed. This meant two things: First, the drug would put $20 plus per pill into J&J’s coffers (versus the fraction that other antibiotics — which are generic — would cost). Second, it put these consumers at risk of Levaquin’s very real side effects. Tens of thousands of consumers have reported that they had developed tendonitis, torn ligament, or ruptured tendons. This effect is most severe in people over 60 years old and people concurrently taking steroids. Ortho-McNeil did its best to downplay this relationship, but lost big in the first of thousands of Levaquin lawsuits to go to trial.

Motrin: In an almost farcical scene out of a movie, in 2008 J&J sent its employees and contractors out to retain stores to buy up all the Motrin it could get their hands on. They began removing defective supplies of the popular painkiller from store shelves in an effort to do a stealth recall. Months later, the company nonetheless decided to let the public in on these problems and issued a public recall.

Tylenol: Ortho-McNeil recalled about 6.3 million bottles of tainted Tylenol Arthritis Pain caplets in November 2009. These were manufactured in its plant in its troublesome Puerto Rico. The tainted drugs had a pungent odor, which was later attributed to chemicals used to treat wood. This plant now remains closed until it can pass regulatory muster.

Recall Mania!: In just this past fiscal quarter alone, J&J withdrew over half a million surgical sutures due to concerns about compromised sterile packaging, (through its Animas subsidiary) recalled 384,000 insulin-pump cartridges that may leak, and recalled 70,000 potentially cracked syringes preloaded with the antipsychotic Invega, and withdrew 43 million bottles of Rolaids, Tylenol, Benadryl, and Sinutab.

So, now Johnson & Johnson says their problems are behind them. We hope so. They have shuffled management and issued new safety guidelines. But with $28 Billion in cash, J&J undoubtedly has the power to withstand any nuisances that these recalls and lawsuits may cause their balance sheets. William Weldon still has his job. Maybe one of these recalls has finally got his attention, and that they put product safety on par with corporate profits.

On April 27, 2011, Johnson & Johnson announced its purchase of Synthes, a medical-device maker for a reported $20 Billion. The deal will leave J&J controlling over 50% of the global market for products used in treating traumatic injury (such as discs, screws and rods to piece together broken bones). The new J&J would then be twice the size of its nearest competitor in these orthopaedic implants. We hope they’re more careful with their new products.

If you or a loved one has been affected by a DePuy ASR or ASR-XL recall or one of the other recalled J&J products and would like to learn more about your legal rights, contact the lawyers at Slater, Slater, Rosenberger & Schulman, P.C. at 1-800-251-6990 or www.srslawfirm.com for a free case evaluation today. Slater, Slater, Rosenberger & Schulman, P.C., with offices in New York and Melville, Long Island, is a full service law firm dedicated to representing clients across the country in products liability, pharmaceutical and other litigation.

Avandia – Why the delay?

admin — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 04:37:10 +0000

As previously reported, on February 20, 2010, an investigative report in the New York Times found that hundreds of people taking Avandia needlessly suffer heart attacks and heart failure every month. About 500 heart attacks and 300 cases of heart failure would be averted every month if consumers switched to alternative medicines. Why the delay in a recall?

TROUBLE WITH AVANDIA

admin — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 05:14:40 +0000

Today the New York Times published an expose on Avandia, providing damning evidence that the GlaxoSmithKline drug causes an unnecessary increase in risk of heart failure and heart attacks in its users. During the third quarter of 2009, over 300 deaths have allegedly been caused by Avandia.

Philadelphia Jury Orders GSK To Pay $2.5M For Paxil Birth Defect Injuries

admin — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 17:22:08 +0000

GlaxoSmithKline must pay $2.5 million to a Philadelphia plaintiff after a jury found that its antidepressant drug Paxil caused a serious hearth birth defect.

The plaintiff’s four year old son was born with several heart defects. The child spent months in the hospital and has had several surgeries, with more to come. The plaintiffs argued that these defects were caused by her use of Paxil during her pregnancy. The jury found that Paxil did not warn of the potential for these birth effects while taking the drug early in a pregnancy (and still hasn’t admitted the link).

There are hundreds more cases against GlaxoSmithKline that are working their way through the courts, and this first verdict will undoubtedly encourage additional plaintiffs to come forward. Although the $2.5 million settlement is relatively small when compared to the nearly $1 billion per year in revenue Paxil brings in, legal observers were watching this case closely, as any loss or win would have a direct impact on both settlement expectations in related cases as well as the likelihood of other potential victims to bring suit.

Once-a-day: Good Business, Unnecessary Risk?

admin — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 16:27:27 +0000

I know that Levaquin has important uses. It is the “atom bomb” of antibiotics: Where others won’t get the job done, Levaquin will destroy everything in its sights. Unfortunately, we’re seeing all too often that this means your tendons are at risks. When other drugs aren’t effective, or when allergies prevent alternative meds, then Levaquin might be right for you. But I remember first hearing that you can now take “once-a-day” antibiotics and heal right up – I thought that was great. I mean, Amoxicillin’s been around for over 30 years, and who likes taking 2-3 pills a day? Especially when you can just take one?

But this SHOULD NOT be used as a marketing tool. The convenience factor should not blur the other risks. If someone doesn’t need something as strong as Levaquin, then they shouldn’t be prescribed it. It’s not just the doctors’ fault: The drug companies promote the benefits of these (often costly) drugs without stressing the additional risks over alternatives. But it is also the consumers’ job to be vigilant. Especially now, when you know the dangers. Be aware and that will go a long way towards being safe.

Source: http://www.levaquinblog.com/2009/11/once-a-day/

Behind the Scenes

admin — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 05:55:03 +0000

Watch this video! Overmedication, taking the wrong pills, and dangerous drug interactions are all things WE can and need to know about and prevent! While we can (and should) blame drug companies for some of the misfortunes caused by some drugs, all too often that only happens after the fact. Be aware and you can prevent some of the pain that these drugs may cause. 51 % of Americans take prescription meds regularly — that’s more than any other nation in the world. While many are necessary, some aren’t and really puts us at unnecessary risk.