A Lousiana woman has filed a compulsive gambling lawsuit against Bristol-Myers Squibb alleging that the drug Abilify led to compulsive behaviors.

Plaintiff Jennifer T. has filed a compulsive gambling lawsuit against the makers of Abilify. In her compulsive gambling lawsuit, she claims that she ingested Abilify from October 2010 until July 2014. During this time, she alleges she developed a compulsive gambling habit. She attributes this compulsive gambling habit to her use of Abilify.

Her Abilify gambling habit lawsuit alleges, “As a result of her Abilify usage, Plaintiff developed compulsive gambling behaviors and suffered mental anguish, loss of capacity to enjoy life, monetary losses, loss of financial stability and other mental, physical, and economic losses.” It goes on to say that “these losses are either permanent or continuing and Plaintiff will suffer the losses in the future.”

Jennifer is filing this compulsive gambling lawsuit on multiple counts including strict liability, breach of express warranty, breach of implied warranty, negligence, negligence per se, negligent misrepresentation, violation of consumer protection laws, fraudulent concealment, loss of consortium and punitive damages.

Overview: Compulsive Gambling and Abilify

Abilify is an antipsychotic generically known as aripiprazole and was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2002. It is used to help control schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and depression, among other mental conditions. By 2014, Abilify became a top-selling drug of Bristol-Myers Squibb and Otsuka, bringing in nearly $8 million in sales that year.

However, Abilify has been connected with different compulsive behaviors including compulsive gambling, compulsive shopping, sexual addictions and other addictive behavior. Many patients who exhibit these compulsive behaviors claim that they never exhibited these behaviors, including compulsive gambling before taking the drug.

The Institute for Safe Medication Practices (ISMP) recently found that drugs like Abilify that stimulate the dopamine receptors in the brain can have devastating side effects including impulse control complications.

Abilify is a D2 receptor partial agonist. It works by activating serotonin 5HT1A receptors and blocks 5HT2A receptors. Medications like Abilify that work like this, release feelings of a “high” or pleasure. Researchers believe that because of these feelings of pleasure, a patient may want to continue doing the things that he or she is doing that increases that feeling of pleasure.

Other studies continue to link compulsive behavior like compulsive gambling with Abilify. In fact, agencies in both Europe and Canada that regulate drugs now required Abilify labels to include warnings about compulsive behavior like compulsive gambling, hypersexuality, and compulsive shopping.

If you or someone you love has taken Abilify and then began to exhibit compulsive behaviors like compulsive gambling or other addictive behaviors, you may benefit from speaking with an experienced attorney.

Filing a compulsive gambling lawsuit can help someone gain compensation for gambling addiction treatment, emotional injuries, loss of quality of life and punitive damages against manufacturers.

Jennifer’s Abilify Compulsive Gambling Lawsuit is Case No. 3:18-cv-01543-MCR-GRJ in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida, Pensacola Division.