A Xarelto injury lawsuit filed by a Tennessee family a few weeks ago has sought financial damages from the makers of the blood thinner citing the wrongful death of a patient. The litigation alleges that Bayer and Johnson & Johnson merely “indicated that there was a risk for bleeding and continue selling the drug side-stepping the important issue of reversing the effects of Xarelto should a bleed occur.” The claim is among nearly 1,300 such drug injury lawsuits filed against Bayer in Canada and the United States.
The deceased was prescribed the anticoagulant to treat the risk of heart stroke from non-valvular atrial fibrillation. He died within six months following internal bleeding. According to the Tennessee Xarelto attorney representing the plaintiff, manufacturers have failed to address the issue of irreversible hemorrhaging associated the drug and their claim of superiority of the drug over other anticoagulants is misleading.
Xarelto makers promoted the drug as superior to the long-used blood thinner warfarin. While bleeding caused by warfarin is stopped with vitamin K shots, there is no cure for Xarelto bleeding side effects turn serious and fatal to cause hemorrhage and death. The Institute for Safe Medication Practices claims the blood thinner is the most frequent cause of pulmonary embolism in users. It also found that 44 percent Xarelto complaints reported involve users with hip and knee replacement surgery.
198 Plaintiffs Join Xarelto Litigation
On August 3, four lawsuits representing over 198 Xarelto bleeding side effects were added to the MDL centralized at an Eastern Louisiana federal court. These claimants are unanimous that the anticoagulant led to fatal or near-fatal injuries and deaths. Many of these claims include wrongful death following irreversible bleeding.
The four bundled claims, as presented by Xarelto lawyers, highlight internal bleeding-related side effects, such as
- gastrointestinal bleeding
- bleeding symptoms visible in urine
- brain hemorrhaging
- subdural hematoma
- pulmonary embolism
- bleeding in intestine and kidney
- irreversible bleeding
- hemoglobin level drop
Study Flays Xarelto Benefit Claims
A study recently reported by Circulation journal of the American Heart Association rejects safety claims by Xarelto manufacturers when compared to warfarin. Researchers discovered that the new-generation blood thinner has no advantage over warfarin as far as “short-term risk of bleeding and arterial thromboembolic events in nonvalvular atrial fibrillation patients” is concerned.
Based on the French monitoring over 32,000 patients treated with Xarelto, Pradaxa, and warfarin over a period, the study mentions “no significant difference in the rate of bleeding events or arterial thromboembolic events.” It warns that though there is no higher bleeding risk from Xarelto, the absence of a reliable antidote makes bleeding events irreversible and fatal. Doctors struggle to stop bleeding as they are unaware of any effective and approved reversal agent. Longer the internal bleeding, greater is the risk of patient’s death.
An April 2015 study reported by the British Medical Journal cited findings of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine team to highlight “two-time higher risk” of internal bleeding in patients being treated with Xarelto.
If you have a potential Xarelto injury lawsuit in Tennessee related to the blood thinner side effects and arising out of “negligence, concealing of information, misrepresentation, and false advertisement by the manufacturer”, please contact us or call on 1-800-632-1404 for a free consultation with our experienced Xarelto attorney.