Amanda Antell  |  July 3, 2015

Category: Legal News

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Risperdal side effects

As many Americans are now aware, a certain antipsychotic has been linked to a peculiar side effect seen in young male patients. Risperdal (Risperidone) has received numerous allegations of inducing gynecomastia, or male breast growth, in young boys.

Currently, there are 130 unresolved Risperdal gynecomastia lawsuits in the United States, filed by men or families of young boys who claim that manufacturing company Jansen Pharmaceuticals failed to warn them against the possible side effects of their product. While gynecomastia causes non-cancerous breast tissue to grow, it often is highly stressful and embarrassing for the patient. Many former Risperdal users claim that they needed surgery to remove the breast tissue.

While the concern of Risperdal has become a recent subject in class action litigation, it has been indicated that Risperdal could cause gynecomastia for years. For example, a study published in 1999 in the medical journal Psychopharmacology was one of the first studies to find that Risperdal could cause gynecomastia. In 2009, the Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychopharmacology published an article indicating that Risperdal significantly increased the rates of prolactin production, which led to cases of gynecomastia to develop in some patients.

Risperdal was originally approved by the FDA in 1993 to treat extreme mental disorders in adult patients, but it was often prescribed to treat children for off-label purposes. Janssen Pharmaceuticals and its parent company Johnson & Johnson allegedly jumped the marketing gun too quickly and began marketing the drug to treat children. By the time Risperdal was actually approved to treat children by the FDA in 2006, there had been hundreds of off-label Risperdal prescriptions to children. While it is not illegal for doctors to prescribe medications for off-label purposes, it is illegal for companies to advertise them for such.

It is important to note that even at the time Risperdal was approved to treat children, it was not known how this drug would affect them. Some unsuspecting patients allegedly discovered the Risperdal gynecomastia side effect, and were forced to contend with their male breasts until they were surgically removed.

Risperdal Gynecomastia Complications


According to experts, Risperdal causes gynecomastia due to its treatment mechanism and how it increases prolactin production. As mentioned before, Risperdal is an antipsychotic medication that works in a unique way. Compared to most traditional antipsychotics, Risperdal works by channeling one brain chemical to ensure mental stability. This brain chemical is called dopamine, which is responsible for controlling the brain’s pleasure and reward sensors.

Prolactin is the hormone responsible for the development of breasts in young women, as well as being responsible for secondary sex characteristics. While young boys also naturally manufacture this hormone, experts explain that due to how Risperdal interferes with the natural function of the pancreas, it naturally increases the amount of prolactin in the body. Due to the fact that young boys are often at the stage of adolescent development by the time they are prescribed Risperdal, the prolactin is increased even more.

This results in an extreme hormone imbalance in the patient, and leads to the development of unnatural male breast growth. Despite the severity of this side effect, Jansen had allegedly chosen to omit this information from the drug’s warning label. Many Risperdal lawsuits claim that this omission was to protect the market value of Risperdal.

Do YOU have a legal claim? Fill out the form on this page now for a free, immediate, and confidential case evaluation. The Risperdal attorneys who work with Top Class Actions will contact you if you qualify to let you know if an individual lawsuit or Risperdal class action lawsuit is best for you. [In general, Risperdal lawsuits are filed individually by each plaintiff and are not class actions.] Hurry — statutes of limitations may apply.

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If you or your son took Risperdal between the ages of 10 and 18 years old and suffered gynecomastia (male breast growth), male breast pain, nipple pain, or nipple discharge, you may be entitled to compensation. See if you qualify by submitting your information below for a free and confidential case review.

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