Bayer Hit with Yaz Lawsuit over DVT, Pulmonary Embolism Injuries

Colorado resident Kimberly Hixon is suing Bayer Pharmaceuticals for injuries she allegedly sustained after ingesting Yaz birth control pills.

Hixon alleges that she developed multiple blood clot injuries, including a pulmonary embolism and deep vein thrombosis, as the direct result of taking Yaz.

Hixon had been prescribed Yaz for birth control in 2007, and had been using it routinely since her prescription. She says in her Yaz lawsuit that she did not use this medication for off-label purposes.

Despite following physician and label instruction, Hixon developed and was diagnosed with multiple blood clot injuries on June 8, 2007 — a pulmonary embolism and deep vein thrombosis.

Hixon is still receiving treatment from her injuries, and must undergo regular checkups to insure that the conditions do not overwhelm her.

Hixon is bringing her Yaz lawsuit against Bayer after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a warning about multiple products in its birth control line, including Yaz. Hixon alleges that Bayer knew before the FDA’s warning about the dangerous Yaz side effects, but had not adequately warned her and other customers, in the interest of maintaining the drug’s popularity.

There were no warnings or indications on the Yaz’s label, nor had she or her physician been informed by the defendant company when the oral contraceptive was prescribed to her. Hixon states that Bayer had the responsibility to warn her and other patients of these Yaz side effects because they were relying on the accuracy of the given information.

The Colorado woman’s charges against Bayer include negligence, false advertising, concealing information, and misrepresenting a product.

The Yaz lawsuit is Kimberly Hixon v. Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals, Inc. et al., Case No. 3:14-cv-10193-DRM-PMF in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois.

Overview of Yaz Complications

Yaz is a combination oral contraceptive (COC) birth control pill that is manufactured and marketed by Bayer and was approved by the FDA in 2006.

Also prescribed to treat mild acne, Yaz is one of the most popular prescribed birth control pills in the country. Along with its cousins Yasmin and Ocella, Yaz is composed of both an estrogen and progestin component to prevent pregnancy. The progestin component is drospirenone, a fourth-generation progestin that is specifically found in Bayer oral contraceptives. It was developed in the last ten years, making it very new to the market.

Because the hormone is so new, there is not much scientific data available regarding its side effects in patients or how it behaves when interacting with other drugs.  This has led many medical experts to suspect that the complications associated with Yaz and its cousins, are due to possible unknown side effects of this hormone.  One known characteristic of drospirenone is that it is a diuretic, which means that the hormone causes the patient’s potassium levels in the blood to rise, which can potentially lead to condition called hyperkalemia.  This condition occurs when the blood slows down, which gives way to the formation of blood clots, which could lead to heart attack, stroke, and other blood-clot related injuries such as those cited in Hixon’s Yaz lawsuit.

Yaz Lawsuit Movement 

So many Yaz and Yasmin lawsuits have been filed that they have been consolidated in to an MDL or Mass Tort. Hixon’s Yaz lawsuit has been added to the Yaz multidistrict litigation (MDL) currently underway In Re: Yasmin and Yaz(Drospirenone) Marketing, Sales Practices and Relevant Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2100, in the U.S. District Court of Southern Illinois.

A Mass Tort is similar to a class action lawsuit. Although in a class action lawsuit all individuals join onto the same lawsuit and divide the settlement equally.

In a Mass Tort several individually lawsuits are organized together under a single judge at the same court. This is often a more appropriate avenue for defective drugs or medical devices than a class action lawsuit because in a Mass Tort, injuries can vary.

However, a Mass Tort does allow plaintiffs to use one attorney or a group of attorneys to represent them, and all lawsuits are able to use any information garnered through the discovery process, making it more efficient for both the plaintiffs and the defendants.

File a Yaz Class Action Lawsuit Claim

If you or a someone you know has been the victim of a Yaz blood clot, you have legal options. Obtain a free case evaluation by submitting your information now:

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