A Benicar villous atrophy lawsuit has been filed by a woman who claims the blood pressure medication caused her gastrointestinal damage.

Benicar (olmesartan) is made by Daiichi Sankyo and Forest Laboratories.

The walls of our intestines are covered by villi, tiny tentacle-like growths that absorb nutrients in the foods we eat.

Benicar villous atrophy is a term that means the villi have eroded away, and the insides of the intestines are so smooth that they can no longer absorb nutrients. The result is malnourishment.

Plaintiff Dorothy P. began taking Benicar  in 2003. She now says her Benicar injuries allegedly include:

• Villous atrophy
• Sprue-like enteropathy
• Colitis
• Kidney failure
• Malabsorption
• Malnutrition
• Dehydration
• Atrophy
• Diarrhea
• Vomiting
• Abdominal pain

Benicar Villous Atrophy Side Effects Mimic Celiac Disease

When Benicar villous atrophy results in severe, chronic diarrhea and substantial weight loss, the condition is called sprue-like enteropathy, which has symptoms similar to celiac disease.

In May 2013, The American Journal of Gastroenterology published a report from the Mayo Clinic that indicated patients who tested negative for celiac disease were shown to have villous atrophy from Benicar.

Fourteen of the 22 patients examined ended up in the hospital with gastrointestinal complications. Once the patients stopped taking Benicar, they were able to gain weight and their gastrointestinal problems lessened.

In July 2013, the FDA approved label changes to add gastrointestinal warnings to Benicar.

The Benicar villous atrophy complaint says that doctors often prescribe the medication to treat high blood pressure for prolonged periods of six months to a year or more. Clinical trials for olmesartan last only a maximum of three months.

Benicar villous atrophy and sprue-like enteropathy symptoms “are typically and often experienced chronically over long periods of time.”

Daiichi and Forest allegedly spent $1 billion on marketing efforts between 2002 and 2008 for Benicar and Benicar HCT. Benicar was pushed as a superior medication to manage hypertension (high blood pressure).

The Benicar villous atrophy lawsuit alleges, “In 2006, the FDA found Daiichi Sankyo and Forest’s efficacy and safety claims unsubstantiated and false or misleading.”

The FDA said “there was no evidence that Benicar was superior to, safer than, or more effective” than other angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) medications designed to lower blood pressure.

The FDA ordered the discontinuation of 50 different promotional pieces dated all the way back to 2002 and the dissemination of corrective messages to doctors who received the original materials.

In January 2015, Daiichi Sankyo agreed to pay the U.S. and the Medicaid participating states more than $39 million plus interest to settle claims allegations the company “caused false claims to be submitted to Federal Healthcare Programs by paying kickbacks to induce physicians to prescribe” Benicar and other olmesartan products from January 2005 through March 2011.

The Benicar villous atrophy complaint alleges that if Dorothy would have known the risks to her health, she would have opted for a different medication to control her blood pressure.

The Benicar Villous Atrophy Lawsuit is Case No. 1:17-cv-04893-RBK-JS in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, Camden Vicinage.