Bayer and Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen Pharmaceuticals are facing a Xarelto lawsuit alleging that the blood thinner, also known as rivaroxaban, is dangerous and defective.

An Illinois resident has filed a Xarelto uncontrollable bleeding lawsuit against the manufacturer Janssen (a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson) and the co-marketer of Xarelto, Bayer Healthcare AG, alleging these companies failed to warn patients and physicians of the increased risks of irreversible and fatal internal bleeding when using Xarelto.

According to the Xarelto lawsuit, plaintiff Annie W. used Xarelto beginning in March 2013 to treat a medical condition and subsequently suffered serious and dangerous side effects including an acute gastrointestinal bleed, for which she was hospitalized, as well as other permanent injuries that were a direct and proximate result of Bayer and Johnson & Johnson’s omissions relating to Xarelto.

Annie claims the drug should not be sold and that Bayer and Johnson & Johnson continued to sell it even though they knew the risks.

The Xarelto lawsuit further accuses the defendants of purposely concealing important safety information from the medical community, the FDA, and the public and did not test the drug enough before it was put on the market.

Xarelto Risks

Approved in 2011, Xarelto is one of the newest anticoagulants (blood thinners) manufactured and marketed by Janssen and Bayer that has been widely prescribed to prevent blood clots in patients suffering from atrial fibrillation (arrhythmia of the heart), deep vein thrombosis (a blood clot deep within the body), pulmonary embolism (a blood clot in the lungs), stroke, and patients who have recently undergone a knee or hip replacement surgery.

It generally is prescribed as an alternative to Warfarin (coumadin), a blood thinner that began to be used in 1954. The most serious potential side effect, complication and risk caused by Xarelto is severe internal bleeding that can result in death. Even more alarming is there currently is no known cure to reverse the type of internal bleeding caused by Xarelto.

Other potential injuries caused by Xarelto include decreased hemoglobin (a substance that carries oxygen in red blood cells), cerebrovascular accidents (an event that leads to a cerebral hemorrhage), hematoma (a semisolid mass in the blood), peripheral edema (swelling of the lower limbs), and dyspnea (difficulty breathing)

Xarelto Blood Thinner Lawsuits

The Xarelto blood thinner lawsuit is seeking compensatory, economic, and punitive damages due to the alleged deceptive and reckless practices in misrepresenting and omitting numerous facts about the dangers of taking Xarelto.

The Xarelto Uncontrollable Bleeding Lawsuit is Case No. 3:14-cv-01278-DRH, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Illinois.