Pradaxa is one of the most popular anticoagulants, or blood thinners, available on the market today. However, more and more patients are coming forward, alleging they suffered from Pradaxa gastrointestinal bleeding after using the medication.

Thousands of patients have filed lawsuits over this dangerous complication, claiming that they should have been better warned of the risk of Pradaxa gastrointestinal bleeding.

What is Pradaxa?

For decades, the staple anticoagulant medication was warfarin, also sold under the brand name Coumadin. In recent years, however, newer anticoagulants have begun to take warfarin’s place as the standard blood thinner. In 2010, the new medication Pradaxa (also known as dabigatran) was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use as an anticoagulant.

Pradaxa and other blood thinners are primarily used to treat or prevent blood clots and conditions related to clotting. Blood clotting problems can be serious or even life-threatening, like a stroke.

Patients who suffer from conditions that place them at risk of developing blood clots often take anticoagulants to limit this threat. For many of these patients, preventing blood clots is an important preventative measure to avoid dangerous health complications. Unfortunately, Pradaxa also carries with it the risk of serious side effects.

Anticoagulant Excessive Bleeding

Of course, any medication will come with certain mild or rare side effects. For anticoagulants, it is normal for side effects to include excessive bruising or bleeding—by the very nature of the drug. In most cases, this isn’t an issue. In some instances, however, excessive bleeding problems can be severe, such as in the case of an emergency surgery, accident, or gastrointestinal bleeding.

When a person suffers from gastrointestinal bleeding, their body counteracts the problem by forming blood clots. However, since the purpose of an anticoagulant is to prevent blood clotting, a person taking these medications may be unable to form these clots in the event of a bleeding emergency, placing them at risk of serious injury or even death. Blood clots, usually dangerous, are in these cases life-saving.

In order to prevent these excessive bleeding problems, most anticoagulants come with antidotes that will reverse the drug’s effects, allowing the blood to clot and help slow or stop the bleeding. Unfortunately, some anticoagulants do not have these antidotes available—or did not for a time. In these cases, internal bleeding became dangerous or life-threatening.

Pradaxa Gastrointestinal Bleeding

When a patient suffers from Pradaxa gastrointestinal bleeding, there is now an antidote available to reverse the anticoagulant’s effects. However, for a number of years, Pradaxa did not have such an antidote, placing patients at serious risk. Indeed, Pradaxa gastrointestinal bleeding is the drug’s most significant side effect, and can lead to serious injuries like brain hemorrhaging or even death.

Over 500 of the 3,781 reported Pradaxa gastrointestinal bleeding complications in 2011 resulted in fatalities.

Filing Pradaxa Gastrointestinal Bleeding Lawsuit

Thousands of lawsuits have so far been filed against Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Pradaxa’s manufacturer, claiming that patients suffered serious side effects including Pradaxa gastrointestinal bleeding.

Lawsuits allege that the company failed to adequately warn the public and the medical community about the Pradaxa gastrointestinal bleeding complications linked with their drug.

After less than two years on the market, sales hit $3.7 million for U.S. patients who had already chosen to use Pradaxa. Given the widespread usage of the drug, Pradaxa gastrointestinal bleeding could threaten millions of people.

If you or someone you love has taken Pradaxa and has subsequently experienced Pradaxa gastrointestinal bleeding or related injuries, you may be able to file a Pradaxa gastrointestinal bleeding lawsuit. Filing a lawsuit cannot reverse injuries or bring a loved one back to life, but it can help to alleviate the financial expenses from medical care or lost wages.