Johnson & Johnson’s leading pain killer, Tylenol, is a household name. However, more than 150 Tylenol lawsuits have been filed alleging the main ingredient, acetaminophen, caused liver damage and liver failure. The Tylenol lawsuits have been centralized in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

On Oct. 21, the litigation status conference is scheduled to take place. All of the Tylenol liver damage lawsuits in the federal Tylenol litigation before Judge Lawrence Stengel assert that Johnson & Johnson and its producing subsidiary McNeil Consumer Healthcare didn’t sufficiently warn of the liver risks involved with Extra Strength Tylenol.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) limited levels of acetaminophen to 325 mg in prescription medications in 2011. However, according to a 2013 article in Bloomberg.com, Extra Strength Tylenol contains 500 mg of acetaminophen, exceeding the FDA cap.

Tylenol, once taken, is primarily processed in the liver. The liver’s job is to process foreign substances, which includes medications like acetaminophen. In some cases, however, acetaminophen byproducts can build up in the liver. When this happens, the body uses a different pathway in the liver, called the cytochrome P-450 system, to remove these byproducts. However, in the process of elimination, the body creates NAPQI, a toxic compound which in excess causes liver damage. People who drink alcohol are at an even greater risk for damage.

Liver damage brought on by too much acetaminophen is serious and can be fatal. And it’s not uncommon — acetaminophen poisoning is the most common forms of drug toxicity in the world, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The Case List, updated on Sept. 15, is filled with Tylenol liver damage lawsuits by plaintiffs who allege instances of hospitalization and the need for a liver transplants.

The Tylenol Liver Damage MDL is In Re: Tylenol (Acetaminophen) Marketing, Sales Practices and Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2436, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

Tylenol and Liver Concerns

With millions of pills ingested annually, Tylenol is one of the most well-known painkillers on the market. An analgesic (pain reliever) and antipyretic (fever reducer), it’s used for treating many conditions. It’s estimated that Tylenol generates more than $1 billion a year for McNeil and Johnson & Johnson.

Marketed as safer than its sister painkillers, the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as aspirin or ibuprofen that may cause stomach discomfort or bleeding, Tylenol and its generic are found in more than 600 prescription and over-the-counter medications. Nevertheless, its main ingredient sits at the heart of different problems. It has been found that its active ingredient, acetaminophen, if taken in too high a quantity, can cause liver damage.

Acetaminophen overdose, and the liver damage it causes, is a preventable problem, which is why the FDA reduced the maximum recommended daily Tylenol dosage. However, Johnson & Johnson’s label’s recommended dosage change comes too late for many. Those plaintiffs that suffered Tylenol liver damage contend that Johnson & Johnson should have warned the public decades ago, and that they put their reputation before public safety.

According to data from an ongoing study funded by the National Institutes for Health (NIH):

“Acetaminophen overdose sends as many as 78,000 Americans to the emergency room annually and results in 33,000 hospitalizations a year, federal data shows. Acetaminophen is also the nation’s leading cause of acute liver failure, according to data from an ongoing study funded by the National Institutes for Health.”