Although Pradaxa is one of the more popular anticoagulants available, more and more patients are claiming that they have suffered from extreme Pradaxa bleeding complications that placed them at significant risk. If you or someone you love has suffered from Pradaxa bleeding complications or other side effects of the medication, you may be able to file a lawsuit.

Blood clotting is a serious and even life-threatening condition, and many patients treat or prevent blood clotting by taking anticoagulants, or blood thinners. Blood thinners are an extremely common method of treating blood clots, but they are not without their own risks.

Indeed, some blood thinners bring more risks than the conditions they are supposed to treat. Some blood thinner patients have chosen to file a lawsuit against their anticoagulant’s manufacturer, alleging that they were not given adequate warning about the dangers of the medication

Background of Pradaxa

Pradaxa (also known by its generic name, dabigatran) is a popular anticoagulant, manufactured by Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals. Pradaxa has been around for less than a decade, first approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) just in 2010.

Though it’s a relatively new drug, millions of patients have already chosen to use Pradaxa. Unfortunately, Pradaxa has been linked with some serious side effects.

Pradaxa Bleeding Complications

Pradaxa, as well as other blood thinners, can cause excessive bruising and bleeding. This is a side effect of the anticoagulation function of the drug: in treating the blood clotting, patients are also left to both bruise and bleed more easily. In most cases, this doesn’t become too much of an issue.

Unfortunately, there are some extreme cases in which these Pradaxa bleeding complications can be extremely severe. If a patient on anticoagulants is involved in an accident or suffers from internal bleeding, their body will be unable to effectively form the blood clots that, in these situations, could be life-saving. This can lead to excessive bleeding or, in the worst of cases, even death.

Blood thinners generally come with an antidote to reverse these bleeding side effects. Indeed, the anticoagulant warfarin, which has been the staple blood thinner for many decades, as well as other standard anticoagulants, have available antidotes. However, lawsuits allege that the period of time after Pradaxa’s release onto the market in which it lacked such an antidote, placing patients at serious risk. Though Pradaxa now has an antidote available to counteract these dangerous Pradaxa bleeding complications, it may not have come soon enough for some patients.

Pradaxa side effects include heart attacks, liver failure, and uncontrollable bleeding. The most common of these complications is excessive bleeding, which in turn can lead to brain hemorrhaging or death. Hundreds of Pradaxa bleeding complications have resulted in fatalities so far, and many more have led to litigation.

Filing a Lawsuit Over Pradaxa Bleeding Complications

Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals has been hit with thousands of lawsuits for failing to adequately warn about Pradaxa bleeding complications.

If you or someone you love has taken Pradaxa and has subsequently experienced any of the above symptoms, such as excessive bleeding or brain hemorrhaging, you may have cause for filing a Pradaxa lawsuit. While filing a lawsuit cannot take away the pain and suffering caused by Pradaxa bleeding complications, it can help to alleviate the financial burden incurred by medical expenses and lost wages.