A recent Benicar lawsuit joins the consolidated federal litigation against Daiichi Sankyo Pharmaceuticals and Forest Laboratories, alleging the blood-pressure drug causes serious gastrointestinal injuries, similar to IBS symptoms.

Plaintiff Ronnal W., a South Carolina resident, was prescribed Benicar to treat high blood pressure. Ronnal alleges that Benicar side effects caused him to develop serious intestinal injuries, including sprue-like enteropathy and chronic diarrhea.

According to the Benicar lawsuit short-form complaint filed June 15, Ronnal incurred substantial medical expenses as a result of his Benicar injuries.

The Benicar lawsuit further alleges that Daiichi Sankyo knew or should have known about the risk of dangerous side effects, but failed to disclose the risk until after independent studies were released and the FDA issued a warning in 2013.

About Benicar Side Effects

Benicar, Daiichi Sankyo’s brand-name olmesartan, was approved in 2002 by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for treatment of patients with high blood pressure. According to the drug’s official website, Benicar has been prescribed to over 11 million patients in the United States.

But it wasn’t until 12 years later that the FDA released a safety alert saying it had “found clear evidence of an association between [Benicar] and sprue-like enteropathy,” a complex of serious gastrointestinal issues.

Patients who before had been diagnosed with celiac disease and other intestinal conditions began to come forward and file Benicar lawsuits.

Allegations Raised in Benicar Lawsuit Litigation

Ronnal is one of thousands of Benicar patients who have filed legal action against Daiichi Sankyo. All of the complaints in the Benicar injury litigation involve similar allegations that Daiichi Sankyo failed to adequately warn consumers or the medical community about the risk of chronic diarrhea associated with the blood pressure medication.

As a result of the drug maker’s decision to withhold this important information, many users have suffered diarrhea symptoms on Benicar for years, which often resulted in repeated hospitalization and medical treatment as doctors attempted to determine the cause of the problems.

In many cases, problems caused by Benicar side effects were misdiagnosed as celiac disease or IBS symptoms.

In July 2012, a report published in the medical journal Mayo Clinic Proceedings described cases consistent with celiac disease among users of Benicar. However, the researchers noted that when the use of Benicar was stopped symptoms often resolved.

In July 2013, the FDA issued new Benicar warnings (PDF) about the risk of severe diarrhea problems, indicating that doctors should be aware that patients may develop sprue-like enteropathy months or even years after first using the medication.

As a result of the delayed diagnosis, many users have been left with permanent gastrointestinal damage, including villous atrophy, which involves the erosion of the microscopic tentacles that line the wall of the small intestines. This can leave individuals with chronic malnutrition and dehydration, as well as a number of other health problems.

Benicar Lawsuit Information

All federal Benicar lawsuits were consolidated in 2015 in a multidistrict litigation in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.

Following oral arguments in March 2016, a transfer order was issued that centralizes all Benicar lawsuits before U.S. District Judge Robert Kugler in the District of New Jersey to reduce duplicative discovery, avoid conflicting orders from different judges and to serve the convenience of the parties, witnesses and the courts.

This Benicar lawsuit litigation already includes over 1,200 cases filed by patients, like Ronnal, who claim Daiichi Sankyo’s hypertension drug Benicar caused them to suffer severe gastrointestinal side effects, including chronic diarrhea, sprue-like enteropathy and rapid weight loss.

The first federal Benicar lawsuit trials are expected to begin later this year.

Did you or a loved one take Benicar and suffer severe side effects?  If so, you may have a potential claim and it is important to review your case with a lawyer as soon as possible.

Ronnal’s Benicar Lawsuit is Case No. 1:16-cv-03483 filed within In Re:  Benicar (Olmesartan) Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2606, U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, Camden Vicinage.