There has been an increase in filings in product liability lawsuits against Stryker Orthopedics over the Rejuvenate and ABG II modular neck hip implants. These hip implants were recalled on July 6, 2012. The Stryker Rejuvenate and ABG II were not strictly speaking metal on metal implants because they have a polyethylene on metal interface between the cup and the ball. However, these implant are causing injuries to the hip tissue from metallosis just like the metal on metal implants such as the DePuy ASR, the Wright Converse and the Biomet Magnum.
All posts by Joseph H. Saunders
Pradaxa Drug Side Effects
Since the FDA approved the blood-thinner Pradaxa in 2010 the drug has
come under scrutiny for adverse bleeding events. In the United States the
drug has exceeded $2 billion in sales. But out of the 850,000 patients it has
been prescribed to it has also been linked to more than 1,000 deaths.
When it was first approved, Pradaxa was the first in a new category of
replacements for Warfarin (Coumadin), the decades-old drug used to prevent
strokes in people with a heart-rhythm disorder known as atrial fibrillation.
Patients prescribed Warfarin needed to be monitored closely, undergoing
frequent blood tests to ensure the drug was working. Pradaxa required
no monitoring and in early tests it appeared to be better than Warfarin at
presenting strokes.
Androgel And Axiron Low Testosterone Drug Side Effects
A recent study has provided new evidence that widely prescribed testosterone drugs Androgel and Axiron – advertised as a way to help men improve a low sex drive and reclaim diminished energy – might increase the risk of heart attacks.
The new study, conducted by researchers at the University of California, Los Angeles; the National Institutes of Health; and Consolidated Research, was published last week in the online journal PLoS One. The study provides compelling evidence that testosterone is being overprescribed to American men and that pharmaceutical companies continue to aggressively market the drug in spite of dangerous side effects associated with it.
Januvia and Byetta Side Effects Lawsuits
Januvia and Byetta are two of the most popular drugs on the market prescribed to treat type 2 diabetes. But ever since their introduction reports of dangerous side effects including pancreatitis and pancreatic cancer have surfaced. These reports spurred concerns of whether the drugs risks outweigh their effectiveness and have led to numerous lawsuits being filed against the drug makers.
This week the American Diabetes Association (ADA) called for a new evaluation of the clinical data on many of the popular drugs used to control blood sugar in patients with type 2 diabetes. These drugs include Merck & Company’s Januvia , Novo Nordisk’s Victoza, Byetta and Onglyza from Bristol-Myers Squibb, and AstraZeneca Plc, among others, and have sales of more than $9 billion annually.
The new evaluation is based on the research of Dr. Peter C. Butler, chief of the division of endocrinology at the University of California, Los Angeles. In his study, and in follow-up studies he found worrisome changes in the pancreases of laboratory rats used in the study that could lead to pancreatic cancer. Based on his studies, both the FDA and the European Medicines Agency have also begun investigations that could lead to new warnings on the drugs, or even to their removal from the market.
Risperdal update
Risperdal update
Lawsuits over Risperdal continue to move forward. The Arkansas Supreme Court has scheduled oral arguments in Johnson & Johnson’s request to overturn a verdict and $1.2 billion fine over the marketing of the antipsychotic drug Risperdal.
Oral arguments are set for Feb. 27 in Little Rock for the appeal from Johnson & Johnson and its subsidiary Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc. Attorney General Dustin McDaniel successfully sued the companies, claiming they downplayed and hid risks associated with taking Risperdal.
The Risperdal lawsuit in Arkansas accused Johnson & Johnson and its Janssen Pharmaceuticals unit of concealing the risks associated with the medication. The state also charged that the companies had deceptively marketed Risperdal as being better and safer than competing medications. In 2012, the Arkansas state court judge overseeing the case levied a $5,000 fine against the drug makers for each Risperdal prescription purchased through the state Medicaid program over a 3 ½ year period. The companies were also ordered to pay a fine of $2,500 for each of the more than 4,500 letters Janssen sent to Arkansas doctors to promote the use of Risperdal.
Stryker Rejuvenate Hip Implant Lawsuit Hip Replacement
Saunders & Walker P.A. Your Source For Accurate Information
www.strykerrecallattorney.com
Stryker Rejuvenate / revision comparison
With the recent announcement of a $2.47 billion settlement offer from
Johnson & Johnson over its flawed Articular Surface Replacement (ASR)
hip implant, it is important to remember that the ASR, while the most
popular, was only one of many metal-on-metal hip implants on the market.
The Rejuvenate and ABGII hip replacement systems, both made by Stryker,
were recalled in July 2012. More than 30,000 of the Stryker hip systems
have been installed worldwide, 20,000 of them in U.S. patients. The recall
came after the implant was been found to be prone to corrosion, joint
dislocation, and the release of metal ions, which can cause metallosis,
tissue inflammation, necrosis and death. The announcement has since led to
hundreds of lawsuits being filed against Stryker.
DePuy Hip Systems Lawsuit Settlement Information www.saunderslawyers.com
http://www.saunderslawyers.com
DePuy Announces U.S. Settlement Agreement to Compensate ASR™ Hip System Patients Who Had Surgery to Replace Their ASR Hip
WARSAW, IN, November 19, 2013 – DePuy Orthopaedics, Inc. (DePuy) and the Court-appointed committee of lawyers representing ASR™ Hip System plaintiffs today announced a settlement agreement to compensate eligible ASR patients in the United States who had surgery to replace their ASR hip, known as revision surgery, as of August 31, 2013.
“We are committed to the well-being of ASR patients, as demonstrated by the voluntary recall and the program providing support for recall-related care,” said Andrew Ekdahl, Worldwide President, DePuy Synthes Joint Reconstruction. “The U.S. settlement program provides compensation for eligible patients without the delay and uncertainty of protracted litigation. DePuy remains committed to our purpose of advancing innovative treatment options to serve those who need joint replacement surgery.”
Hip Replacement Implant Lawsuit Settlement saunderslawyers.com
Today, Monday November 18, 2013, the federal court docket reflected for the first time that there is a settlement in the Johns & Johnson ASR metal on metal hip implant litigation. The New York Times and Bloomberg Financial News had reported based upon unnamed sources a $4 billion dollar settlement of the 12,000 lawsuits brought against DePuy and Johnson & Johnson for failures of the ASR metal on metal hip implants. There had been no confirmation of any settlement by Johnson & Johnson, DePuy or any of the lawyers negotiating the deal. Further, the court filings had not provided any confirmation of a settlement. However, several scheduled jury trials involving the ASR had recently been settled or postponed leading to speculation that there had been a “stand down” of litigation in anticipation of a settlement.
Johnson & Johnson DePuy ASR Hip Replacement Implant Lawsuit Settlement Signup Information
Johnson & Johnson DePuy ASR Hip Replacement Implant Lawsuit Settlement Signup Information
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http://www.saunderslawyers.com (800) 748 – 7115
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Johnson & Johnson will pay more than $4 billion to resolve more than 12,000
lawsuits in federal and state courts over defective DePuy ASR hip implants. Once
approved, this settlement will be the largest US settlement of legal claims for a
medical device, dwarfing the 2001 settlement of claims involving defective Sulzer
hip and knee implants that cost $1 billion.
Low Testosterone And Middle Aged Men
Middle Age Men Facing Low T Crisis of Epidemic Proportions
Or are they?
According to an October 15, 2013 New York Times article, low testosterone levels, or Low T, in men are basically an invented condition. Dr. Joel Finkelstein, an Associate Professor at Harvard Medical School, told the New York Times that there was “no such disease” as low T. Once used for older men with hormonal deficiencies caused by medical problems, the Low T gels are now being sold ‘as a lifestyle product’. Furthermore, the article states that Low T is rarely the cause of erectile dysfunction.
The article goes on to state that Dr. Eric Topol, Cardiologist and Chief Academic Officer at Scripps Health in San Diego was alarmed at the number of his patients who use underarm roll-on testosterone medications, stating that the medications come with a high risk of coronary artery disease and possible side effect of an enlarged prostrate.
If doctors are alarmed and there is a risk of an enlarged prostate, along with a high risk of heart disease, then why are millions of men using testosterone gels? The simple truth is that pharmaceutical companies invest enormous amounts of energy, money and time into learning the psychology of consumers. Pharmaceutical companies spend billions of dollars parlaying the results of their research into strategies for direct-to-consumer pharmaceutical advertising, called DTCPA by the FDA. Whether we are in our car, or on our phones, computers or televisions, DTCPA soaks the market from almost any electronic device. Not one lobe of our cerebral cortex is forgotten. We are enticed visually, seduced orally, and lured through our own imaginations to conjure pictures of material and sexual success, and suddenly, “Hey Doc! I think I have that!”
Costs for some of these overpriced medications can amount to $400 – $500 month, usually picked up in part, by insurance companies. That may sound good for us in the short-term, but what are we actually paying for? In this case, it is a well-funded psychological warfare designed to keep us addicted to a commercially created illness, as well as an increase overall to our already overpriced healthcare costs.
Some of the adverse effects of testosterone gels do not only include the prescribed user, but children who come in contact with the gels. Medical literature in the Journal of Pediatric and Endocrinology and Metabolism, chronicles two incidents of a 21-month-old boy and 4-year-old girl who grew pubic hair and had other adult-related physical reactions.
Morry B. Smulevitz, Director of Communications for Lilly, stated that low testosterone was a “recognized clinical condition with signs and symptoms that could impact millions of patients.” The article does not identify Smulevitz as a medical professional, nor does it indicate where the clinical data he refers to originated. I guess we’re just supposed to ignore the medical professionals from Harvard and Scripps, and take his word for it.