In a recent development in the Risperdal legal movement, a Pennsylvania court has scheduled a meeting in June 2015 to discuss the progress of the litigation. This court is overseeing hundreds of Risperdal lawsuits, where each of the plaintiffs allege that the antipsychotic caused them to develop gynecomastia, or male breast growth.

According to court documents that are filed in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, the meeting will be held on June 16, 2015. The commenting legal experts state that all relevant topics to these Risperdal gynecomastia claims will be discussed, including surrounding discovery and future trials. There are approximately 1,320 Risperdal lawsuits filed in the Pennsylvania mass tort program, with each of the plaintiffs alleging that they were not warned against the side effect of gynecomastia.

Previously, two Risperdal bellwether trials have been concluded this year in the Pennsylvania court. The first one ended on Feb. 24, 2015 with the plaintiff being awarded $2.5 million. The plaintiff was an autistic man who was prescribed Risperdal as a child, and had developed large breasts as a result. The second trial concluded on March 20, 2015, when the jury once again sided with the plaintiff after finding the Risperdal warning label insufficient. Unfortunately, the plaintiff was not awarded any money because the plaintiff could not conclusively prove that his gynecomastia was caused by Risperdal.

Despite the mixed results of these Risperdal lawsuits, legal experts are pleased with this progress as these trials provided possible insight into how future bellwether trials may go. Each of these lawsuits accuses Johnson & Johnson’s subsidiary, Janssen Pharmaceuticals, of failing to protect the plaintiffs against their product’s dangers.

In many of these claims, the victims reported that they developed breasts after taking Risperdal and had to resort to surgery in order to remove them. In more extreme cases, some plaintiffs report developing breasts as large as D-cups and experienced lactation.

These Risperdal Lawsuits are In Re: Risperdal Litigation, Case No: 100300296, in the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas.

Overview of Risperdal Gynecomastia Complications

Risperdal was first released in 1993 to be an atypical antipsychotic for adult patients suffering from schizophrenia and bipolar disorders. Later on, in 2006, it was approved to treat children suffering from schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and for some forms of autism. Ever since Risperdal was first released in the 1990s, Janssen Pharmaceuticals had advertised this drug for pediatric use after observing that physicians often prescribed Risperdal to treat children for off-label purposes. However, Janssen and Johnson & Johnson had begun marketing the drug for pediatric use to doctors, despite not knowing the side effects the drug could have on young children.

While it is not illegal for physicians to prescribe medications for off-label purposes, it is illegal for pharmaceutical companies to advertise drugs for such purposes. Many critics of Risperdal claim that the manufacturing companies had placed their profit interest of Risperdal ahead of the safety of their consumers, which has led to numerous product liability claims, as well as the overall litigation movement. Risperdal can cause several side effects such as fatigue and weight gain, but is most infamous for inflicting gynecomastia. As mentioned before, gynecomastia is when breasts develop in young boys or men, who often report breast pain, breast tenderness, nipple discharge, and severe breast growth.

Risperdal became popular amongst younger patients because it only channeled one brain chemical, dopamine, to stabilize the brain. This means that patients undergo less emotionally draining side effects, and often enjoy a greater sense of energy. However, by interfering the dopamine manufacturing process, Risperdal also greatly disrupts the organ where dopamine is made in the body, the pituitary gland. A potential side effect of Risperdal is a major increase in prolactin production, which is the hormone responsible for female breast development. Therefore, increased prolactin levels could induce breast development in boys.