Lawyers for Heart Attacks, Strokes, Wrongful Death
The product liability lawyers at Saiontz & Kirk, P.A. are reviewing potential lawsuits for testosterone replacement therapy users who have suffered serious health problems from AndroGel, AndroDerm, Axiron, Testim or other testosterone treatments.
Contact Our Lawyers to Review a TESTOSTERONE INJURY CASE
Financial compensation may be available through a testosterone injury lawsuit as a result of the manufacturers’ failure to provide adequate warnings for consumers and the medical community including risk of:
- Heart Attack
- Stroke
- Pulmonary Embolism
- Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT)
- Blood Clots
- Death
Studies have suggested that certain users may face an increased risk of cardiovascular problems from testosterone therapy side effects, including treatments delivered as a gel, patch, injection, implant or pill.
Testosterone Therapy Heart Attack and Stroke Problems
The lawyers at Saiontz & Kirk are investigating potential testosterone lawsuits for men throughout the United States who suffered a heart attack, stroke or death after using:
- Testosterone Gel or Cream
- Testosterone Injection
- Testosterone Pills
- Testosterone Implant Pellets
In recent years, the use of testosterone supplements and testosterone replacement treatments has increased substantially throughout the United States, often being prescribed to men with no real need for the medication.
Testosterone is a hormone that is involved in maintaining sex drive, muscle mass, bone health and energy levels. However, it is common for testosterone levels to begin to decrease for all men as they age, and it is widely recognized that for most men this is completely natural and not something that requires medical treatment.
While testosterone replacement therapy may be recommended for individuals with a clinical diagnosis of androgen deficiency, involving consistent symptoms and unequivocally low testosterone levels, drug makers have conducted aggressive direct-to-consumer advertising encouraging men to seek treatment for “Low T”, knowing that the risks may outweigh the benefits for most men.
Recent studies have suggested that many men may face a substantially increased risk of heart attack, stroke or wrongful death from testosterone treatments.
In November 2013, a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) suggested that men with certain heart problems may be 29% more likely to die, suffer a heart attack or stroke on testosterone therapy.
These findings come after long concerns about the heart risks of testosterone replacement therapy. In 2009, researchers halted a study that was funded by the National Institutes of Health due to the cardiovascular risks with testosterone treatments. That study involved 200 older men with a high prevalence of heart disease. Those receiving testosterone therapy were found to have a spike in the rate of heart attacks, leading the researchers to cancel the study early.
In January 2014, a study published in the medical journal PLoS One further highlighted the concerns, finding that men over the age of 65 and younger men with pre-existing heart disease may face a two fold increased risk of heart attacks from testosterone treatments.
In March 2015, the FDA issued a drug safety communication to announce that new label warnings will be added to low T drugs about the possible increased risk of heart attacks and strokes, indicating that testosterone drug makers are also being required to conduct clinical trials to better define the potential cardiovascular risks.
The new testosterone warnings also indicate that the drugs should only be used by men suffering from hypogonadism that has been proven through laboratory testing, addressing years of aggressive marketing by the drug makers, which has resulted in many men using the drugs unnecessarily.
Testosterone Lawsuit Allegations
The testosterone lawyers at Saiontz & Kirk, P.A. are investigating potential claims for men who suffered a heart attack, stroke, blood clot or wrongful death following use of Androgel, AndroDerm, Axiron, Testim or other Low T drugs. It appears that many of these problems may have been avoided if the manufacturers had properly disclosed the heart risks to consumers and the medical community.
Testosterone replacement therapy lawsuits are being reviewed against the makers of:
- AndroGel: One of the most widely used testosterone treatments, which is a spray gel applied to the shoulder or upper arms. Since it was first introduced in 2000, it has been aggressively marketed by AbbVie in direct-to-consumer advertisements for treatment of “Low T”.
- AndroDerm: A testosterone patch introduced in 1995 by Actavis, which is warn on the skin.
- Axiron: A testosterone gel introduced by Eli Lilly in 2010, which is applied to the armpits in a manner similar to deodorant.
- Bio-T Gel: A once-daily testosterone treatment gel that was approved in February 2012, but is not widely used.
- Delatestryl: A testosterone injection treatment introduced by Endo Pharmaceuticals in 2008, which is injected into the buttock muscle usually every 1 to 4 weeks.
- Depo-Testosterone: Injection testosterone replacement therapy that was introduced by Pfizer in 2006, and is not available as a generic testosterone shot.
- Foresta: A testosterone spray gel that is applied to the thigh daily, which was introduced by Endo Pharmaceuticals in December 2010.
- Testim: A gel treatment for testosterone replacement that is applied to the shoulders daily. It was introduced in 2002 by Auxilium and is widely used.
- Testopel: A testosterone pellet that was first introduced in 1972 and is sold by Auxilium. The testosterone implant is placed under the skin, releasing testosterone over a period of 3 to 6 months.
- Striant: A testosterone supplement sold by Auxilium that adheres to the gums and is placed twice daily.
According to allegations that will be raised in complaints filed throughout the United States, the makers of these low testosterone medications placed their desire for profits before the safety and health of consumers by:
- Failing to adequately research the risk of stroke or heart attack from testosterone therapy, especially among men with cardiovascular disease, high cholesterol, blocked arteries, diabetes, obesity and other prior heart problems.
- Recklessly marketing testosterone treatments in direct-to-consumer advertisements that encourage otherwise health men to seek prescription medications for “Low T” if they are experiencing any number of general symptoms, such as lack of energy, weight gain, decreased sex drive and other natural issues experienced by men as they age.
- Withholding information from consumers and the medical community about the heart risk of testosterone treatments.
Testosterone Class Action Injury Lawyers
The attorneys at Saiontz & Kirk, P.A. are reviewing individual injury lawsuits, as well as the potential for testosterone class action suits for men throughout the United States who have suffered a heart attack or stroke.
Families of men who died as a result of these injuries may also be entitled to financial compensation through a testosterone treatment wrongful death lawsuit.
All cases are reviewed and handled by our law firm under a contingency fee agreement, which means that there are no fees or expenses for the client unless our testosterone injury lawyers are successful obtaining a recovery in your case.