A new Cymbalta withdrawal lawsuit has been filed by a Texas couple alleging the wife experienced severe and unwanted side effects after attempting to stop taking the Eli Lilly designed and manufactured antidepressant.

Plaintiffs Patti and Charles Pokorny allege in the Cymbalta withdrawal lawsuit, filed October 17, that:

“[Mrs.] Pokorny’s use of the drug and consequent injuries and damages were a direct and proximate result of Lilly’s act and omissions relating to its failure to provide adequate instructions for stopping Cymbalta and its failure to include adequate warnings that fully and accurately inform users and physicians of the frequency, severity, and/or duration of Cymbalta’s withdrawal symptoms.”

Pokorny was allegedly first prescribed Cymbalta to treat her idiopathic peripheral neuropathy in 2005. Pokorny continued to take the drug as prescribed for about seven years, according to the Cymbalta lawsuit. In October 2012, Pokorny claims she began to experience leg pains and weight gain, at which point her physician suggested she should begin to wean herself of the antidepressant.

According to the Cymbalta withdrawal lawsuit, the plaintiff experienced “severe and dangerous withdrawal symptoms upon attempting to discontinue Cymbalta [including] brain zaps, suicidal ideations, nausea, hallucinations, vomiting, insomnia, elevated blood pressure, stomach bloating, and excessive night sweats.”

Pokorny joins a growing number of plaintiffs filing Cymbalta lawsuits that allege Eli Lilly was fully aware of the extent and severity of the Cymbalta withdrawal syndrome, but neglected to disclose this information to the public.

Pokorny claims that had she or her physician been aware of the frequency and severity of Cymbalta withdrawal syndrome, they would have elected to go with another medication to treat the plaintiff’s condition.

The Cymbalta withdrawal lawsuit alleges several claims against Eli Lilly, including negligence, strict product liability design defect, failure to warn, negligent misrepresentation, and fraud, breach of implied warranty.

Over the past year, dozens of consumers have filed product liability lawsuits against Eli Lilly alleging the company did not fully disclose or minimized the effects of Cymbalta Antidepressant Discontinuation Syndrome.

The Cymbalta Withdrawal Lawsuit is Pokorny, et al., v. Eli Lilly and Company, Case No. 4:14-cv-02960, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas.

Cymbalta Antidepressant Discontinuation Syndrome

According to a 2005 drug study conducted by Eli Lilly, over 51 percent of Cymbalta consumers claimed they experienced antidepressant discontinuation  syndrome symptoms; up to 17 percent of Cymbalta users allegedly experienced the more severe withdrawal symptoms. It was reported that two weeks into conducting the study, none of the Cymbalta withdrawal symptoms had been resolved.

Some Cymbalta withdrawal side effects drug consumers may experience include:

• Severe nausea
• Vomiting
• Dizziness, light-headedness, vertigo
• Headaches
• Hot and cold flashes
• Mood swings, anxiety, irritability, hostility
• Nightmares
• Electric-shock-like sensations in the brain
• Tingling, tickling, prickling, pricking, or burning sensations of the skin
• Tremors, shaking hands
• Visual disturbances