The blood-thinner Xarelto can cause uncontrolled bleeding — a dangerous and possibly fatal side effect. Patients who say they were harmed by the drug and family members who lost a loved one to severe bleeding filed lawsuits against the manufacturer.
Xarelto is used to prevent blood clots from forming due to a certain irregular heartbeat or after hip or knee replacement surgery. It is also used to treat blood clots and to prevent the blood clots from forming again.
Lawsuits filed against the makers of Xarelto claim that the drug maker failed to warn consumers of the risk of severe bleeding that can result in death. Unlike other anticoagulant, such as Warfarin, severe bleeding from Xarelto does not have an antidote.
In 2014, Ruth McGowan filed a lawsuit on behalf of her deceased father, Thomas Dunkley. According to the complaint, Dunkley took Xarelto to reduce the risk of stroke. However, he suffered serious bleeding in his brain after taking the drug for about a month. The lawsuit accuses the makers of Xarelto of concealing safety risks and not properly testing the drug.
In another case, Nancy Packard sued the makers of Xarelto on behalf of her deceased husband, William. Her lawsuit alleges that William took Xarelto for six months for atrial fibrillation and shortly after, he suffered bleeding in his brain. Doctors tried to save him by drilling a hole in his skull to alleviate building pressure but were unable to stop the bleeding, and he ultimately died. Packard’s complaint says the drug makers failed to warn about the lack of an antidote.
Currently, there are more than 4,500 lawsuits pending against the makers of Xarelto in the U.S. District Court Eastern District of Louisiana. If you or a loved one suffered an injury from taking Xarelto, contact our office immediately. Our office handles Xarelto cases from across the country.