As the makers of low-T drugs are facing a mass legal action over allegations that testosterone products can promote deadly blood clots, a new study has quantified the risk of heart attack in testosterone therapy patients.

Low-T drug lawsuits have alleged that the earliest clinical tests of drugs like AndroGel found that the drug can promote the formation of blood clots within the body. Specifically, it was found that the drugs could promote an increase in the hematocrit level.

This aspect of blood chemistry makes it easier for blood to clot inside the body. Additionally, epidemiological studies have found a risk of various blood clot-related problems (including heart attack) linked to the use of low-T drugs. This latest study specifically focuses on heart attacks, which can be caused by blood clots in the blood vessels that supply the heart.

This latest study on heart attacks and low-T drugs was published by researchers based out of the University of British Columbia. The researchers published their findings in this month’s edition of the medical journal Pharmacotherapy.

In this study, researchers analyzed data from almost a million males between the ages of 45 and 80. Their analysis led the researchers to conclude that first-time users of testosterone products like AndroGel had a 41 percent increase in their risk of myocardial infarction, a type of heart attack caused by blood clots.

Low-T drug lawsuits have alleged that not only are testosterone products dangerous, but that they’re aggressively over-marketed in spite of the risk. As government investigators scrutinize the safety of these drugs and low-T drug lawsuits are filed, the makers of drugs like AndroGel have continued to engage in alleged “disease mongering.”

Disease mongering is a scheme in which pharmaceutical companies convince the public that a mild, minor ailment or condition is a full-blown disease that needs their proprietary treatment.

As they age, all males produce less testosterone. This causes some men to feel lethargic, have decreased libidos, and suffer other symptoms now grouped together as “low-T.” Low-T drug lawsuits allege that aggressive marketing campaigns have effectively “created” low-T as a disease.

A growing number of low-T drug lawsuits have been filed by men — or their next of kin — alleging that they suffered serious complications from low-T drugs. These low-T drug lawsuits typically allege blood clot-related medical problems, including heart attacks like those described by the Canadian research team, as well as pulmonary embolism and deep vein thrombosis. These low-T drug lawsuits typically allege that drug makers were aware of these risks and continued to aggressively market the drugs anyway.

The AndroGel MDL is In Re: AndroGel Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2545, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.