Bayer HealthCare and Johnson & Johnson subsidiary Janssen Pharmaceuticals are facing serious allegations of gastrointestinal bleeding injuries from Xarelto.

These pharmaceutical companies are now facing a new Xarelto lawsuit from a New Hampshire couple, claiming that the husband also suffered gastrointestinal bleeding from Xarelto.

Plaintiff couple Charles and Loretta G. are filing this Xarelto lawsuit together, claiming that the blood thinner medication caused near fatal injuries to Charles.

He had been prescribed Xarelto to treat his atrial fibrillation, and to prevent the overall risk of stroke and other blood clot events.

At the time he was prescribed Xarelto, neither Charles nor his physicians were aware of the potential internal bleeding risks. Charles began his Xarelto prescription on Nov. 5, 2014, and had followed prescription instructions along with physician’s advice during all times relevant.

However his diligence and prescription was short lived, as Charles allegedly experienced gastrointestinal bleeding from Xarelto on Nov. 24, 2014. Charles needed medical treatment for his injuries, requiring a blood transfusion and hospitalization.

Charles and Loretta decided to file legal action against the manufacturing companies, for allegedly failing to warn them against potential Xarelto side effects.

Overview of Xarelto Bleeding Complications

Xarelto was released as a joint effort between Bayer HealthCare and Johnson & Johnson, after witnessing the success of Pradaxa. When Pradaxa was released in 2010, it was the first medication to be released for anticoagulant purposes since Warfarin in the 1960s.

This marked the release of the new line of new generation anticoagulants,  released to compete against Warfarin and other newer blood thinners. After the medication entered the market in 2011, Xarelto quickly became a successful anticoagulant and earned the manufacturing companies millions.

It was soon discovered, however, that Xarelto had the same problems as Pradaxa, when patients reported numerous incidents of internal bleeding. Gastrointestinal bleeding from Xarelto was especially prevalent in injury reports, often requiring serious medical treatment and hospitalization.

The problems from anticoagulants stem from the drugs’ treatment mechanism, which inhibits the body’s clotting mechanism. This improves the circulation of the blood flow, but prevents the body from recovering from internal bleeding injuries.

This has allegedly resulted in numerous cases of gastrointestinal bleeding from Xarelto and other bleeding complications, each of which could be potentially fatal. It is important to note that there was currently no bleeding antidote for Xarelto, and that only Warfarin had a readily available reversal agent for patients.

Even though these are potentially fatal complications, Bayer HealthCare and Janssen Pharmaceuticals allegedly failed to warn Charles and other Xarelto patients. Charles states that he never would have used this medication if he had known the risk of gastrointestinal bleeding from Xarelto.

The Xarelto Gastrointestinal Bleeding Lawsuit is Case No. 1:17-cv-00033, in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Hampshire.