Birth Control Lawsuit Alleges DVT Caused by Yaz and Yasmin

A new Yaz and Yasmin lawsuit has been filed, echoing concerns related to blood clots and stroke found in the thousands of other cases facing manufacturer Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals.

Plaintiff Brittni Pierce filed her Yaz and Yasmin lawsuit alleging that Bayer’s flagship birth control pills caused her a serious medical condition related to blood clots.

Yaz and Yasmin (and related drugs like Ocella, Beyaz, and others) are a type of oral contraceptive, also called “the pill.” Since the original “pill” back in the 1960s, medical researchers have reformulated them several times, with the goal of making them more effective and safe. Yaz, Yasmin and related drugs use a type of synthetic hormone called drospirenone to prevent the release of an egg. Drospirenone belongs to the fourth generation of oral contraceptive pills. However, there are concerns that drospirenone-based birth control pills have an even greater risk of blood clots than older-generation birth control pills.

Many of the health problems allegedly linked to Yaz and Yasmin are related to blood clots. Blood clotting is a normal process that prevents humans from bleeding to death. However, when blood clots inside the body, and inside major blood vessels, it can block the supply of oxygen and nutrients to critical tissues. Depending on where in the body the blood clot gets stuck, it can cause stroke, pulmonary embolism, and certain types of heart attacks. These are life-threatening medical emergencies. According to the birth control lawsuit, postmarket surveillance has reported fatal strokes in women as young as 17 among patients taking Yaz and Yasmin.

According to the Yaz and Yasmin lawsuit, Pierce suffered deep vein thrombosis, or DVT, while taking Yaz/Yasmin. DVT is a situation in which a blood clot forms in the large blood vessels of the leg. DVT can vary from no symptoms to pain and swelling. However, the real concern with DVT is the clot can break loose and lodge in other tissues including the brain, lungs, or heart, causing strokes, pulmonary embolism, or heart attacks, respectively. Per her Yaz and Yasmin lawsuit, Pierce required emergency medical care to assess the DVT and will likely need long-term monitoring to watch for complications.

Pierce’s individual Yaz and Yasmin lawsuit has joined thousands of others in a type of group litigation called a multidistrict litigation, or MDL. MDLs are similar to class action lawsuits in some ways. In both MDLs and class action lawsuits, a group of plaintiffs allege that they have suffered similar harm from the same defendants. The main difference is that class action lawsuits start out as group lawsuits, while MDLs start as individual lawsuits that are later coordinated into a group.

This Yaz and Yasmin lawsuit is Brittni May Pierce v. Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals Inc., et al, Case No. 3:14-cv-10328, filed within In re: Yasmin and Yaz (Drospirenone) Marketing, Sales Practices and Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2100, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois.

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If you or someone you know suffered a birth control blood clot injury such as a stroke, heart attack, deep vein thrombosis, or pulmonary embolism, you have legal options. See if you qualify for compensation by submitting your information for a free and confidential case evaluation:

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