Lawyers for Xarelto Bleeding Injury or Death
The product liability lawyers at Saiontz & Kirk, P.A. pursued cases for individuals who have experienced severe bleeding problems while using Xarelto.
As a result of the drug makers’ failure to adequately warn about the risks associated with the anticoagulant, financial compensation was pursued through an Xarelto lawsuit for individuals who have experienced:
- Internal Bleeding or Gastrointestinal Bleeding
- Brain Hemorrhage
- Hemorrhagic Stroke
- Wrongful Death From Bleeding Problems
Xarelto Bleeding Problems
Xarelto (rivaroxoaban) was introduced in 2011, as a joint product developed by Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen Pharmaceuticals subsidiary and Bayer Health Care.
The anticoagulant has been used by millions of Americans to reduce the risk of stroke, deep vein thrombosis (DVT), pulmonary embolism (PE) and other blood clot injuries. It has been prescribed to individuals with non-valvular atrial fibrillation, following knee and hip replacement surgery and to prevent recurrence of clots.
While all blood thinners carry a risk of internal bleeding, Xarelto appears to be associated with a much greater risk than the manufacturers indicated in warnings provided for consumers and the medical community.
In many cases, Xarelto bleeding problems can not be controlled by physicians, due to the lack of an approved reversal agent.
Johnson & Johnson and Bayer promoted Xarelto as a superior alternative to warfarin (Coumadin), which has been the go-to anticoagulation therapy for decades.
Although the manufacturers have indicated that the newer drug requires less frequent monitoring than warfarin, increasing evidence suggests that blood monitoring on Xarelto may reduce the bleeding risk. In addition, it appears that information was withheld about the lack of an effective Xarelto reversal agent to stop bleeding problems that may develop.
While doctors are able to reverse the effects of warfarin quickly if bleeding occurs, Xarelto bleeding is often uncontrollable, increasing the risk of serious injury or death.
Xarelto warnings fail to properly address the increased risk for these serious and fatal bleeding problems, despite a substantial number of adverse event reports and other findings suggesting that individuals taking Xarelto have more gastrointestinal bleeds and need more transfusions.
In addition to the inadequate warnings, Xarelto does not appear to provide sufficient benefits to justify the additional risks. Therefore, many lawsuits allege that an Xarelto recall should be issued, claiming that the medication is unreasonably dangerous and defective without an effective reversal agent.
Allegations in Lawsuits Over Xarelto
Claims raised in the Xarelto litigation are similar to many of the allegations brought against Boehringer Ingelheim over their related anticoagulant, Pradaxa.
Following the filing of thousands of lawsuits over failure to warn about the risk of bleeding problems with Pradaxa, Boehringer Ingelheim agreed to pay more than $650 million in mid-2014 to resolve the litigation.
Among the allegations raised in Xarelto injury lawsuits being pursued by individuals nationwide, plaintiffs claim Johnson & Johnson and Bayer:
- Failed to provide accurate warnings about the risk of Xarelto bleeds;
- Withheld information about the lack of an effective Xarelto reversal agent;
- Engaged in aggressive marketing that encouraged doctors to use the more expensive and more dangerous drug;
- Sold an unreasonably dangerous and defective drug as it was initially formulated;
- Failed to update warnings, issue a “Dear Doctor” letter or issue an Xarelto recall after it became clear that a large number of users were suffering severe and life-threatening injuries from uncontrollable bleeding.
Rather than withdrawing Xarelto from the market or taking steps to ensure accurate information was provided for consumers and the medical community, Johnson & Johnson and Bayer continued to promote the medication as safe and effective, causing millions of additional Americans to be exposed to a risk of serious injury.
Xarelto Class Action Lawyers
The lawyers at Saiontz & Kirk, P.A. are no longer reviewing additional individual bleeding injury claims and potential Xarelto class action lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson and Bayer.
The makers of Xarelto appear to have placed their desire for profits before consumers safety, by failing to properly research the risk of bleeds on Xarelto or provide adequate information about the serious and potentially life-threatening health problems that may be caused by use of Xarelto.
