A Mississippi woman’s Benicar HCT lawsuit accuses the drug’s manufacturers of failing to warn her about the risk of bowel problems associated with the drug.

Plaintiff Carolyn R. says she started using Benicar and Benicar HCT around February 2007.

She says that as a result of her taking that medication, she developed serious bowel problems including “villous atrophy, spru-like [sic] enteropathy, colitis, kidney failure, malabsorption, malnutrition, dehydration, and/or symptoms of diarrhea, vomiting, nausea, abdominal pain,” among other alleged symptoms.

Her Benicar HCT lawsuit names as defendants Daiichi Sankyo Inc., Forest Laboratories LLC and their related companies. These companies are together responsible for the development, manufacture and sale of Benicar HCT, according to Carolyn.

Based on the alleged facts, Carolyn is asserting claims based on theories of defective design, failure to warn, negligence, misrepresentation, fraud, breach of warranty, unjust enrichment, and violation of New Jersey’s Product Liability Act.

She seeks an award of compensatory damages and punitive damages, plus reimbursements of the court costs and attorneys’ fees involved in bringing her Benicar HCT lawsuit.

Benicar HCT Lawsuit Background

Benicar HCT is a hypertension medication that contains two different drugs, olmesartan and hydrochlorothiazide. The latter drug is a diuretic used to treat high blood pressure.

Olmesartan, the generic name for the drug known as Benicar, is the drug at issue in the ongoing multidistrict litigation over the side effects of Benicar HCT and related drugs.

The MDL is a collection of Benicar HCT lawsuits and claims over other Benicar-related drugs that have been consolidated in a single federal court in New Jersey.

Generally, the plaintiffs in these claims are patients who were prescribed Benicar or one of its related drugs for hypertension, then suffered a pattern of gastrointestinal symptoms known as sprue-like enteropathy.

According to the MDL’s master long form complaint, characteristic symptoms of sprue-like enteropathy are “severe, chronic diarrhea with substantial weight loss.” The symptoms tend to resemble those of celiac disease.

Sprue-like enteropathy is associated with development of a condition known as villous atrophy, in which the inner surface of the intestine erodes, inhibiting it from absorbing nutrients from food.

Many Benicar patients who suffered sprue-like enteropathy symptoms had villous atrophy confirmed by biopsy, according to the Benicar lawsuit.

The plaintiffs say defendants Daiichi Sankyo and Forest Laboratories failed to properly warn patients and doctors about the side effects of Benicar HCT.

They argue the drug’s manufacturers either knew or should have known about the associated bowel problems since they were clearly documented in scientific studies and aftermarket reports.

They cite a drug safety communication issued by the FDA in July 2013 alerting patients and doctors to the presence of Benicar HCT side effects. The FDA noted it had received several reports of patients who suffered sprue-like enteropathy symptoms after taking Benicar or related drugs. Symptoms improved in all the reported patients after they stopped taking olmesartan.

The federal Benicar MDL began in April 2015 with 15 claims. By about one year later, it contained over 1,200 claims.

Carolyn’s Benicar HCT lawsuit joins the multidistrict pending in federal court known as In Re:  Benicar (Olmesartan) Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2606, U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, Camden Vicinage.