Manufacturers of Zostavax, Merck & Co., Inc., and other named defendants are currently facing a Zostavax shingles vaccine lawsuit in Wisconsin federal court by a woman alleging she suffered severe adverse effects and side effects from receiving the vaccination shot.

Plaintiff Jane B. is a resident and citizen of the state of Wisconsin. She says that she was inoculated with the Zostavax vaccine on Nov. 8, 2011. However, she notes that the vaccine never functioned as it was intended.

As a result of the vaccine, she says that she suffered from “a long series of resilient herpes zoster outbreaks.” According to the Zostavax shingles vaccine lawsuit, it “inevitably resulted in neurological interference and painful post-herpetic neuralgia that has been resistant to all therapies.”

On June 27, 2016, Jane says she began being treated for severe herpes zoster, or shingles. She was also treated from “uncontrolled symptoms of shingles outbreaks” beginning June 30, 2017.

On July 27, 2016, she was allegedly diagnosed with post-herpetic neuralgia, which according to the Zostavax shingles vaccine lawsuit, is a “chronic condition of pain and nerve damage secondary to zoster infections.”

The Zostavax shingles vaccine lawsuit was filed on multiple counts including negligence, defective design, failure to warn, breach of express warranty, breach of implied warranty, fraudulent misrepresentation, negligent misrepresentation, unjust enrichment and violation of Deceptive Trade Practices Act.

Jane demands a trial by jury.

Overview: Zostavax Shingles Vaccine Lawsuit

There have been several lawsuits filed against the makers of the Zostavax shingles vaccine alleging that the live virus contained in the vaccine is too strong for some individuals. Lawsuits further report that the manufacturers failed to properly advise the public of adverse side effects and complications, including the development of shingles.

The Zostavax shingles vaccine helps prevent people over the age of 50 from developing shingles. What the vaccine contains is a weakened chickenpox virus that helps our body’s immune system from fighting off any development of shingles.

However, there are several adverse side effects being linked to the vaccine that include:

• Shingles after vaccine
• Myelitis (spinal cord inflammation)
• Postherpetic neuralgia (pain after shingles blisters pass)
• Vision problems (eye infections, retinal damage, blindness)
• Hearing loss
• Autoimmune disorders (Guillain-Barre Syndrome, Chronic Inflammatory Demyelinating, Meniere’s Disease, polyneuropathy)
• Cardiovascular event
• Stroke
• Pneumonia
• Congestive heart failure
• Bell’s Palsy (facial paralysis)
• Vasculitis
• Serious neurological disease/disorder

Additional serious adverse side effects have also been reported by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that have led them to issue a black box warning and have it placed on Zostavax labels. Complications have included brain damage, death, paralysis, rashes, myalgina, anaphylactic reactions, necrotizing retinitis and gastrointestinal disorders.

Other reported side effects associated with the vaccine have also included joint pain, fever, headaches, nausea, and muscle pain. The development of shingles is thought to stem from a dormant chickenpox virus.

The Zostavax Shingles Vaccine Lawsuit is Case No. 2:18-cv-00686-LA, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Wisconsin.