A lawsuit has been filed against drug manufacturer Eli Lily over its drug Cymbalta, alleging that the antidepressant could cause a life-threatening adverse reaction called Stevens Johnson Syndrome (SJS).

Plaintiff Christol Hutchison was prescribed Cymbalta in 2011. By December of that year, she began to develop SJS. According to the SJS lawsuit, her physicians have stated that her Stevens Johnson Syndrome was caused by Cymbalta.

Hutchison alleges in the Cymbalta SJS lawsuit that Eli Lilly failed to adequately warn patients about the risk of SJS and its more deadly form, Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis, associated with its antidepressant. To back this assertion, the lawsuit states that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) asked Eli Lily to investigate the link between SJS and Cymbalta as early as 2007. However, it was not until July of 2010, when the FDA sent a warning letter that the drug manufacturer responded.

The Cymbalta and SJS Connection

Cymbalta is an antidepressant, specifically a Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor or SSRI. SSRIs have proven to be a “magic bullet” of sorts for many people with depression. However, evidence has surfaced that the drugs may cause Stevens Johnson Syndrome.

SJS is a type of autoimmune reaction. In a healthy person, the immune system is constantly active, attacking foreign invaders like bacteria or viruses. But when this system goes haywire, it can attack a person’s body, causing a variety of diseases, reactions, and syndromes depending on what exactly goes wrong.

In the case of SJS, the immune system attacks the skin. This leads to a painful, potentially debilitating and disabling rash. SJS can be life-threatening, and can progress to an even more dangerous disease called Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis or TEN. With SJS up to 30 percent of a person’s skin is affected; with TEN up to 100 percent of the skin can be affected.

While many questions remain about SJS and TEN, it is know that the vast majority of cases are triggered by exposure to medications from over-the-counter drugs like Tylenol and Motrin to prescription drugs like Zithromax and Cymbalta.

The Stevens Johnson Syndrome Lawsuit is Christol Hutchison v. Eli Lilly & Company, Case No. 14-3025-PKH, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas, Harrison Division.