Bristol Myers Squibb and AstraZeneca LP are facing a recently filed wrongful death lawsuit from an Alabama widower alleging his wife died due to adverse reactions to the Onglyza medication. The man alleged that the Onglyza medication had caused his wife to develop heart failure, which the pharmaceutical companies failed to warn against.

Plaintiff Jeffery B. is filing this wrongful death claim on behalf of his later wife Nancie B., who was prescribed the Onglyza medication to treat her type-2 diabetes symptoms. Like millions of other patients, Nancie had been suffering from type-2 diabetes and was seeking different treatment options for symptoms.

The Onglyza medication was one of these treatment drugs, which is a part of the incretin mimetic drug family. Onglyza helps manage blood sugar levels by preventing the body from absorbing too much sugar and signaling the pancreas to make more insulin.

Insulin is the body chemical necessary for metabolism, which allows the body to extract nutrients from food. Without sufficient insulin levels, the body is forced to metabolize fat instead of sugar and makes the blood very acidic. This can cause a number of serious side effects including kidney damage and debilitating diabetes symptoms.

Jeffrey says Nancie was prescribed the Onglyza medication in December 2014 and had continued the prescription until June 18, 2016. According to the Onglyza lawsuit, Nancie developed heart failure during the course of her Onglyza prescription, resulting in her death.

Overview of Onglyza Medication Complications

The FDA has recently ordered that AstraZeneca, Bristol Myers, and other incretin mimetic manufacturers notify their patients about the increased risk of heart failure on their drugs’ warning labels. The FDA ordered this after an advisory committee had urged the agency to require AstraZeneca and Bristol Myers to add heart failure to the Onglyza medication warning label in April 2015.

Bristol Myers and AstraZeneca had funded a SAVOR study that was published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2013, after a large number of Onglyza patients were reportedly hospitalized for heart failure.

Researchers had observed 16,492 type-2 diabetes patients that were prescribed the Onglyza medication and other treatment drugs, and had found that Ognlyza patients faced a higher risk of hospitalization for heart failure.

The Onglyza medication is supposed to help reduce the chances of these adverse conditions from occurring, but has been allegedly causing numerous patients to experience heart failure. Not long after Nancie’s death, Jefferey had opted to file legal action against the pharmaceutical companies.

Jeffrey alleges that at all times relevant Nancie and her physician had relied on the information provided by AstraZeneca and Bristol Myers Squibb, which did not include disclosures of Onglyza heart failure. According to the Onglyza lawsuit, Nancie had only used the Onglyza for its intended use and had no reason to be wary against potential heart failure.

Jeffery states that Nancie would not have agreed to take the Onglyza medication, if she had known that were potentially fatal drug side effects. Jeffery is filing this Onglyza lawsuit seeking multiple damages, including counts of negligence and failure to warn.

This Onglyza Lawsuit is Case No. 5:18-cv-00390-KKC, in the U.S. District Court of Northern Oklahoma.