Allegations that taking Abilify may cause patients to develop severe compulsive behaviors such as compulsive gambling and shopping are increasing.

Consumer protection attorneys are looking to help patients who took Abilify and began to suffer these adverse side effects.

What is Abilify and What Does It Treat?

Abilify, generically known as aripiprazole, is a popular antipsychotic medication used to treat schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depression, and tourette syndrome.  In some cases, it is also prescribed to treat irritability associated with autism.

Abilify is manufactured and marketed by Bristol-Myers Squibb and the Otsuka Pharmaceutical Company.  Abilify is one of the world’s top grossing prescription medications.  Between April of 2013 and March of 2014 the antipsychotic brought in 6.8 billion dollars worldwide with over 8.7 million prescriptions written each year.

Bipolar disorder is a condition associated with mood swings involving manic highs and depressive lows.  Schizophrenia is a disorder of the brain that causes people to interpret reality abnormally. Depression is a mood disorder that causes people affected to feel persistent sadness and loss of interest.  And Tourette syndrome is a disorder of the nervous syndrome that involves repetitive movements and unwanted sounds.

Abilify helps to regulate the symptoms of these mental conditions.

How Does Abilify Work?

Abilify is a second generation antipsychotic that works differently than other antipsychotic medications.  Abilify works by targeting both dopamine and serotonin receptors in the brain.

Most second generation antipsychotics work by blocking chemical receptors, but Abilify works by either enhancing or inhibiting serotonin levels to keep a proper chemical balance.  Medical professionals often refer to the medication as a stabilizer.

How Does Abilify Cause Compulsive Behaviors like Compulsive Gambling?

One adverse side effect recently associated with taking Abilify involves compulsive gambling or gambling problems.  Some medical professionals believe the antipsychotic promotes pathological or compulsive behavior due to the way the drug relates to dopamine in the body.

One study from the Institute for Safe Medicine Practices found that medications like Abilify that stimulate dopamine can trigger extreme impulse control disorders.  According to researchers the lack of impulse control occurs because the dopamine causes feelings of pleasure that encourage the person to continue those activities.  This can cause a patient on Abilify to suffer a serious gambling problem.

Compulsive gambling can cause Abilify users to suffer huge financial losses.  People with a gambling problem often have trouble stopping and walking away from games like slot machines, black jack, poker, and many others even if they do not have the money to lose.

Consumers who have taken Abilify and have developed a compulsive gambling problem may be able to join a class action lawsuit investigation.  A lawsuit against the pharmaceutical manufacturer would likely allege that the company failed to warn the public and medical professionals about adverse side effects associated with the antipsychotic.

Specific claims against the company might include negligence, breach of warranty, fraud and misrepresentation, failure to warn, and several others.  Deciding whether or not a person should bring an Abilify compulsive gambling lawsuit can be a big decision.  A legal professional can help potential plaintiffs determine if bringing a lawsuit is right for them.