Pharmaceutical giants claim that their new generation anticoagulants are safer than America’s traditional choice, Warfarin, based on recent studies.

The manufacturers of Pradaxa and Eliquis recently showcased evidence of their blood thinners’ safety and efficiency to the scientific community at the 2015 American Heart Association Scientific Sessions Conference.

Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Bristol-Myers Squibb, and Pfizer Inc., respectively the manufacturers of Pradaxa and Eliquis, presented these studies during the November conference in Orlando. These studies concluded that Pradaxa and Eliquis were safer than Warfarin, based on the bleeding injuries recorded in the studies.

Pradaxa Bleeding Study

At the conference, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals released Pradaxa’s current safety profile in a new study, which was conducted by the company and researchers from Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.

The Pradaxa study findings showed that Pradaxa was 26% less likely to cause a major bleeding injury, compared to Warfarin, and carried a 28% reduced risk of stroke and similar odds to suffering a gastrointestinal bleeding event.

The Pradaxa study consisted of 26,604 patients and compared all three new generation anticoagulants to Warfarin, which showed that only Eliquis significantly reduced the risk of bleeding complications. Eliquis was the third in line of a recent precession of newer anticoagulants released in the United States, which were meant to directly compete with Warfarin.

Similarly Pfizer and Bristol-Myers Squibb had presented an abstract study of Eliquis bleeding risks at the conference, which was also published in the November 2015 issue of Circulation. The companies’ researchers found that Eliquis carried only half the risk of major bleeding injuries, compared to Warfarin.

Concerns Over New Generation Blood Thinners

Pradaxa was the first of the new generation anticoagulants released in 2010, for the same purpose as Warfarin. Xarelto was released only a year later as a conjoined effort from Bayer Pharmaceuticals and Janssen Pharmaceuticals, and soon overtook the anticoagulant market.

Eliquis was released in 2012, and is the most recent addition to this coveted market. Each of these drugs are often prescribed to patients with atrial fibrillation who are at high risk of stroke, by preventing blood clot formation.

Unfortunately patients have reported numerous Pradaxa bleeding injuries, with some incidents resulting in product liability lawsuits. Former Xarelto and Eliquis patients have alleged similar complaints, claiming that the pharmaceutical companies did not adequately warn them of the potential life-threatening bleeding risks.

Until recently there was no reversal agent available in the case of new generation anticoagulant bleeding injuries, but Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals is in the process of gaining approval for a Pradaxa antidote.

Patients using Warfarin had the option of using vitamin K to clot their internal bleeding injuries, but Pradaxa patients have had to contend with dangerous and sometimes irreversible Pradaxa complications until recently.

With the development of a Pradaxa bleeding antidote and the recently released studies, Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals touts that Pradaxa bleeding risks are lower than Warfarin. Still, these revelations have not dissuaded many Pradaxa and other new generation blood thinner users from filing lawsuits against the drug makers over adverse bleeding side effects.

Despite Boehringer Ingelheim’s settlement of numerous Pradaxa bleeding lawsuits in May 2014for the amount of $650 million, additional cases alleging the company failed to warn patients and the medical community about the risks of using Pradaxa continued to be filed.

If you or someone you love took Pradaxa or another anticoagulant and suffered a serious bleeding event, you may have grounds to file a lawsuit to recover damages for your pain, suffering and medical expenses. A qualified Pradaxa lawyer can evaluate your case for free and explain your legal options.