Kentucky Injury Lawyer Blog

Company e-mails of Bayer AG, which is the largest drug manufacturer in Germany, appear to indicate that they wished to promote their birth control drug Yaz for unapproved off-label uses and mislead women about the drug's safety. (Here is a previous post providing a summary of the Yaz problems and litigation.)

Just last month the FDA released a report of a study concluding that women experience a 74% increase in developing blood clots compared to women on other birth control drugs.The documents turned over in the ongoing lawsuits over the drugs' side effects appear to demonstrate that Bayer knew of the blood clot risks, but withheld the information from regulators, doctors and patients.

Another set of e-mails seem to indicate that Bayer wanted to promote Yaz for purposes for which it was not approved. The e-mail from a sales consultant to sales representatives appears to be targeted to enlarge the uses of Yaz among doctors.

I am familiar with this litigation as I have filed suits on behalf of clients against the drug manufacturers. The first trials in the litigation are set for January 2012.

Dangerous and defective drugs are responsible for many injuries and death nationwide. Our profession calls this area of law products liability. Consulting a lawyer experienced in handling these matters is usually easy. Most lawyers will provide a complimentary initial consultation to evaluate a claim or case and let the person know if they can help.

The U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) wants users of the drug Multaq to consult with their doctors immediately. Multaq is used to treat atrial fibrillation. The FDA abruptly ended a clinical trial call PALLAS when the results began showing a 100% increase in the risk of heart failure, stroke and death.

This is the fifth time the FDA has reported potential risks with Multaq. Other reports and warnings included increased risks of liver failure, congestive heart failure and torsade de pointes (heart arrhythmia). The FDA is telling doctors not to prescribe Multaq to patients with permanent atrial fibrillation.

Continue reading "Multaq Faces FDA Scrutiny, Potential Recall And Lawsuits" »

Takeda Pharmaceuticals, maker of Actos, faces hundreds of lawsuits from consumers complaining of side effects, including bladder cancer. Indeed the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued warnings regarding the link between Actos and bladder cancer after publication of new research. Actos has also been linked to heart failure, weight gain and bone loss and fracture.

Actos is a Type 2 diabetes drug taken daily by patients. The FDA found that a person's risk of bladder cancer is 40% higher for those taking Actos for at least one year.

Dangerous and defective drugs are responsible for many injuries and deaths nationwide. Our profession calls this area of law products liability. Consulting an attorney experienced in handling these matters is usually easy. Most lawyers will provide a complimentary initial consultation to evaluate a claim or case and let the person know if they can help.

This consumer protection information is provided by Louisville, Kentucky attorney Will Nefzger, a partner at Bahe Cook Cantley & Nefzger PLC.

Triad alcohol wipes, made by Triad Group and H&P Industries Inc., have come under fire recently and may be associated with as many as 8 deaths countrywide. At least two people have died from infections of the bacterium Bacillus cereus after having the wipes used on them. The U. S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has received reports of other non-fatal infections associated with the wipes, iodine prep pads and lubricating jelly made by Triad.

Media reports suggest FDA awareness of cleanliness and sanitary condition problems at H&P plants, where the products are made, for the last decade. Bacillus cereus has been found on pads at the plant. Theses products are widely used in hospitals across the country.

Dangerous and defective drugs and medical products are responsible for many injuries and deaths nationwide. Our profession calls this area of law products liability. Consulting an attorney experienced in handling these matters is usually easy. Most lawyers will provide a complimentary initial consultation to evaluate a claim or case and let the person know if they can help.

This consumer protection information is provided by Louisville, Kentucky attorney Will Nefzger, a partner at Bahe Cook Cantley & Nefzger PLC.

A new study by researchers at Johns Hopkins University found that Pfizer's anti-smoking pill Chantix causes a 72 percent increase in the risk of heart problem-related hospitalizations. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) previously had warned of increased risk or suicide and erratic behavior in 2009, and as recently as last month added a warning for users with a history of heart disease, but this new study suggests users even without a history of heart disease are at risk.

It is hard not to recognize the irony of this new study and the recent FDA warnings regarding heart disease. A drug that is designed to help people quit smoking, which directly leads to heart disease, causes the very thing it is designed to prevent. Currently, there are multiple lawsuits that have been filed against the makers and distributers of Chantix.

Dangerous and defective drugs are responsible for many injuries and deaths nationwide. Our profession calls this area of law products liability. Consulting an attorney experienced in handling these matters is usually easy. Most lawyers will provide a complimentary initial consultation to evaluate a claim or case and let the person know if they can help.

This consumer protection information is provided by Louisville, Kentucky attorney Will Nefzger, a partner at Bahe Cook Cantley & Nefzger PLC.

Statin drugs marketed under many different names such as Crestor, Lipitor, and Zocor have recently been linked to serious side effects including rhabdomyolysis. Rhabdomyolysis develops when muscle protein and toxic cell components from dying muscle fibers are released into the blood stream to be filtered out by the kidneys. These muscle by-products saturate the kidneys and overwhelm the filtration process blocking and damaging the structures and tubules of the kidneys, which can result in kidney failure. Symptoms of rhabdomyolysis include muscle tenderness and weakness in the legs, fatigue, nausea, and dark urine. Symptoms can continue months after patients have stopped taking the drug.

The FDA has started requiring black box warning levels to be placed on statin drugs. If you think you may have been injured by a statin drug such as Crestor, Lipitor, or Zocor contact a personal injury attorney at Bahe Cook Cantley & Nefzger. (502) 587-2002

I have posted before attempting to explain the difference of and MDL v. a class action. However, this article I found makes my attempt to do so look meager and does an excellent job at explaining the difference, the expectations someone should have in the process and how to go about choosing a lawyer.

Johnson & Johnson (J&J) blames the massive recalls of its medicines totaling over 200 million bottles in the last year and criminal charges on lax cleaning procedures at a manufacturing plant. J&J is now recalling Rolaids, Tylenol and Benadryl in addition to other products it makes.

The problems date back to 2007 and, according to J&J, have been traced to its Fort Washington, Pennsylvania plant. The problem has affected many of the company's brands.

Dangerous and defective drugs are responsible for many injuries and deaths nationwide. Our profession calls this area of law products liability. Consulting an attorney experienced in handling these matters is usually easy. Most lawyers will provide a complimentary initial consultation to evaluate a claim or case and let the person know if they can help.

Continue reading "Johnson & Johnson Recall: Faulty Cleaning Procedures Blamed " »

Fosamax, Mereck's super-drug for treatment of osteoporosis in women, is one of the most profitable drugs in the history of the pharmaceutical industry. But, is it's popularity due to it's efficacy or Merck's aggressive marketing?

Bahe Cook Cantley & Jones PLC attorneys Shawn Cantley, John Bahe & Brian Cook currently represent women who have suffered jaw bone death, known as osteonecrosis of the the jaw, allegedly caused by Fosamax use. A study reported on ABC news and in the prestigious New England Journal of Medicine links Fosamax usage to femur fractures in women. Jaw bone death and femur fractures are not things that the medical community saw very often before bisphosphonates, the class of drugs to which Fosamax belongs, came along. Now, Fosamax is being linked to a greater likelihood of esophagus cancer.

There have also been serious questions raised about whether Fosamax is effective at achieving it's purported purpose of preventing or minimizing osteoporosis.

Anyone wishing to know more about Fosamax and the legal implications of injury by this or other drugs can direct an inquiry to the author of this post by clicking on the name below.

A name familiar to many of those who may follow pharmaceutical litigation, Pfizer Inc., the world’s largest drug maker, recalled almost 200,00 bottles of Lipitor after receiving reports of a “musty” odor emanating from bottles of the popular cholesterol controlling drug.

According to the release put out by the company, the complaints were received in July and originated from a single batch of bottles from a third-party manufacturer; therefore, the company believes that is has the situation under control. According to Pfizer, a preliminary investigation into the odor indicates that whatever the cause may be that it does not appear to pose a threat to the safety of consumers.

Pfizer is currently working in conjunction with the third-party manufacturer of the bottle to determine the odor’s cause. At present, Pfizer chosen not to reveal the name of the manufacturer.