A plaintiff, Carl H., files a lawsuit in Oklahoma federal court again the manufacturers of saxagliptin, Bristol-Myers Squibb Company and AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals.

According to the saxagliptin heart failure lawsuit, saxagliptin, which goes under the brand name Onglyza, is a prescription drug prescribes for treatment of patients with type-2 diabetes. The drug helps to lower these patients’ blood sugar level.

According to the saxagliptin heart failure lawsuit, however, the prescription use of saxagliptin can cause serious adverse health effects and complications including congestive heart failure.

The saxagliptin heart failure lawsuit alleges that Carl had ingested this type-2 diabetes drug but suffered from the use of the drug.

According to the saxagliptin heart failure lawsuit, Carl, a citizen and resident of Oklahoma state, had begun using saxagliptin between February 2015 and August 2015.

However, without knowing of these adverse side effects, he “developed serious and/or permanent effects including, but not limited to, heart failure, congestive failure, and cardiovascular injury.”

In addition, the saxagliptin heart failure lawsuit iterates that Carl suffered significant mental and bodily injuries, including mental anguish, pain and suffering, disfigurement, embarrassment, loss of earnings and earning capacity, and having to endure future medical expenses.

The lawsuit specifically iterates that the defendants failed to inform the plaintiff, the public and the medical community at large of the serious adverse effects and complications that result from taking saxagliptin. These complications include, as allegedly suffered by the plaintiff, congestive heart failure related to these adverse effects.

Saxagliptin Heart Failure Lawsuit Facts

In recent years, the public and medical community have been increasingly more hesitant in the use of some newer diabetic drugs, including saxagliptin, because of the association that they may have in causing heart failure.

Saxagliptin is a type-2 diabetes drug that help lower blood sugar. It is prescribed to be taken along with the implementation of proper diet and exercise.

However, according to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, saxagliptin is associated with an increased risk of hospitalization for heart failure.

Heart failure is a condition in which the heart is not able to pump enough blood throughout the body to meet its needs. Heart failure can be due to coronary artery disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, or obesity.

According to the FDA, a panel of the Endocrinology and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee voted to update saxagliptin’s warning labels concerning its risk in causing heart failure. Additionally, one of the fifteen panelists recommended the removal of saxagliptin from the U.S. market completely.

The FDA asked saxagliptin manufacturer’s Bristol-Myers Squibb and AstraZeneca to conduct a study to illustrate that the association between heart failure and saxagliptin is not more than 30%. In the study conducted by the defendants, they looked at records of 16,492 people with type-2 diabetes and who possessed the risk of having cardiovascular disease.

According to the report, 1,222 people within the study had adverse cardiovascular effects–lower than the 30% threshold. However, the report does indicate that there is a 27% increase in the rate of people becoming hospitalized due to heart failure.

The Saxagliptin Heart Failure Lawsuit is Case No. 6:17-cv-00327-RAW, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma.