Tylenol is one of the most well-known painkillers on the market, used by millions of people around the globe every week for common ailments such as colds, fevers, headaches and body aches. However, it’s been found that its active ingredient, acetaminophen, if taken in too high a quantity, can cause liver damage.

In fact, acetaminophen overdose is one of the most common poisonings in the world. Over 140 Tylenol liver damage lawsuits are pending, accusing the manufacturers of Tylenol of failing to disclose this serious risk on the drug’s warning label.

One of these plaintiffs is Cassandra Garcia, who alleges in a new Tylenol lawsuit filed in September 2014 that she suffered acute liver failure from Tylenol side effects.

An analgesic (pain reliever) and antipyretic (fever reducer), Tylenol is an over-the-counter drug used to treat many conditions. According to Garcia’s Tylenol liver damage lawsuit, Garcia was taking Extra Strength Tylenol from December 2012 to Feb. 5, 2013. On or about Feb.6, 2013, she suffered acute liver failure, allegedly caused by her use of Extra Strength Tylenol.

Acetaminophen Overdose a Real Risk for Tylenol Users

Acetaminophen, the main ingredient in Tylenol, sits at the heart of Tylenol’s problems. Acetaminophen overdose causes hundreds of deaths each year in the United States, and is the leading cause of liver failure requiring transplants in England. Roughly 60,000 emergency-room visits and 100,000 calls to poison centers are attributed to acetaminophen overdose.

Johnson & Johnson and McNeil Consumer Healthcare are currently facing a number of Tylenol liver damage lawsuits. Currently standing at more than 140 product liability suits in the federal courts, plaintiffs that suffered liver damage allege the drug manufacturers didn’t sufficiently warn of Tylenol’s liver damage risks, and state that McNeil should have warned the public years ago.

With so many similar claims, the Tylenol liver damage lawsuits were consolidated into a multidistrict litigation (MDL), consolidated under U.S. District Court Judge Lawrence Stengel in the Eastern District of Pensylvania. Often times in drug-related cases, an MDL is used to reduce duplicative discovery in cases, help avoid conflicting pretrial rulings from different judges, and to serve the convenience of the parties, witnesses and the courts.

Garcia is suing McNeil-PPC and Johnson & Johnson for claims of strict liability, breach of implied and express warranty, failure to warn, design defect, negligence, negligent misrepresentation, fraud, and violation of consumer protection laws.

Garcia’s Tylenol lawsuit, Cassandra Garcia v. McNeil-PPC, et al., falls under the current MDL, IN RE: Tylenol (Acetaminophen) Marketing, Sales Practices and Products Liability Litigation, MDL No: 2436, in the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

Tylenol History

Manufactured by Johnson & Johnson subsidiary McNeil Laboratories, and marketed as safer than its sister painkillers, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), Tylenol and its generic are compounded by pharmacies into more than 500 prescription and over-the-counter medications. Unlike NSAIDs, such as aspirin or ibuprofen, Tylenol does induce stomach discomfort or bleeding. It does, however, have a history of causing liver problems.

The active ingredient in Tylenol is acetaminophen. If taken in too high a dose, it causes liver damage, and in some cases liver failure. But this problem is preventable if a lower dosage is used. Previously 4,000mg per day, the new norm is 3,000mg per day.

Not a new problem, the FDA issued guidelines in 2009 for adding acetaminophen overdose information to Tylenol packages, and in 2011 the agency confirmed the link between acetaminophen and liver damage.

The Tylenol MDL bellwether trials are not expected to begin until later 2015.