A New Jersey plaintiff is suing the Japanese drug maker, Daiichi Sankyo, for causing him to allegedly suffer intense diarrhea symptoms and chronic intestinal damage.

Plaintiff Raymond R. claims that as a direct result of using their hypertension drug, Benicar, he developed these embarrassing and serious side effects.

There are approximately 67 million Americans who suffer from high blood pressure or hypertension, and who take various measures to keep their conditions under control.

If left unchecked, these patients could potentially develop cardiac complications, so patients are encouraged to lead as healthy and active of a lifestyle as possible. Benicar is currently one of the most popular hypertension medications in the country, used by millions of patients.

According to experts, Benicar’s popularity stems from the defendant’s advertisements that boasted the drug’s capabilities. After the plaintiff’s physicians reviewed the Benicar advertisements, Raymond had been prescribed the drug at some point in the Fall of 2004.

Initially, he had used the drug according to the prescription instructions and the advice of his physician; he had reportedly developed no severe Benicar side effects when he first started using the medication. Unfortunately, the situation soon changed for the plaintiff as he started experiencing severe weight loss and diarrhea.

Soon after developing symptoms, Raymond had to be hospitalized multiple times for these injuries; it took multiple hospital trips for physicians to adequately diagnose his condition.

Medical records indicate that he suffered serious gastrointestinal injuries including diarrhea, nausea, vomiting, dehydration, abdominal pain, kidney problems, and weight loss.

Other complications include sprue-like enteropathy and chronic intestinal damage that could have resulted in villous atrophy, which prevents his intestinal tract from absorbing nutrition.

Overview of Benicar Complication Allegations

Raymond has decided to file legal action against Daiichi Sankyo, after recently discovering that his intestinal damage could have been caused by Benicar. Previously, many physicians misdiagnosed a number of Benicar patients in suffering from Celiac disease due to the similarity in symptoms.

It was only recently that the FDA made the connection between the numerous injury reports of sprue-like enteropathy and Benicar prescriptions. In July 2013, the FDA issued a drug safety alert for Benicar symptoms, after the agency reviewed a 2012 study by the Mayo Clinic. The researchers from Mayo Clinic made this discovery after Benicar patients had reported negative for Celiac disease from blood test results.

It is important to note that Benicar is the only drug in its medication class to cause such symptoms, and that the symptoms could potentially last months in patients.

Despite the severity of these risks, Daiichi Sankyo had chosen to omit this information from the drug’s label. Additionally, the drug company had been accused of paying a number of doctors kickbacks in return for mentioning Benicar in a positive light.

Raymond and a number of other patients have suffered significantly due to this decision, leading to a number of product liability suits being filed against the pharmaceutical giant and its American partners.

Raymond’s lawyers state that Daiichi Sankyo and its associates had the civil responsibility of warning their client and other Benicar patients of all potential side effects associated with their drug, because they rely on the given information.

Raymond insists that he never would have used Benicar if he had known about the possibility of chronic diarrhea and gastrointestinal damage.

So for being allegedly responsible for manufacturing, selling, distributing, and marketing a dangerous drug, Raymond is suing Daiichi Sankyo. The charges include negligence, false advertising, concealing information, and misrepresenting a product.

This Benicar Lawsuit is filed In Re: Benicar (Olmesartan) Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2606, in the U.S. District Court of New Jersey, Camden Vicinage.