Despite the widespread use of blood thinners like Eliquis, these medications can come with extreme safety risks.

Eliquis safety and the safety of other new blood thinners is a growing concern in the medical community as more adverse event reports come in.

Indeed, in the last year alone, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has reported receiving almost 34,765 adverse event reports related to oral anticoagulants.

These reports included almost 3,000 fatalities, as well as over 9,500 adverse events.

The problems reported by patients included hemorrhaging (bleeding) in the head that was significant enough to land patients in the hospital.

Blood thinners are a common method of prevention for blood clotting and stroke.

Warfarin has long been considered the staple drug for blood clot prevention, and the majority of patients still take this drug, though it is sometimes known by its brand names Coumadin and Jantoven.

Anticoagulants have been used since the 1950s, yet these drugs can still carry serious risks of injury or even death.

According to the ISMP, or the Institute for Safe Medication Practices, anticoagulants are the “highest risk outpatient drug treatment in older patients,” noting that this risk has only increased after the approval of four new blood thinners in 2010.

These new blood thinners are Pradaxa, Xarelto, Eliquis, and Savaysa. These drugs are marketed as being easy to use, and do not require the regular blood testing that warfarin requires.

Despite the popularity of this improvement—many patients have switched to one of these four drugs from warfarin even though they cost more—Eliquis safety risks can be severe.

Sandy Walsh, a spokesperson for the FDA, notes that the federal agency examines the data coming in about these anticoagulants regularly.

And though the fact that these new anticoagulants do not require the same kind of consistent blood testing checkups that warfarin requires, which is a common draw for patients, doctors are growing increasingly concerned that this may place patients at a greater risk.

Dr. Oussama Wazin, who works with the Cleveland Clinic, shares this concern. “I think the biggest potential risk is that patients may be on the wrong doses because now we cannot monitor these [with blood testing], and we don’t know if the patient is really anticoagulated.”

If a patient is not taking the proper doses, Dr. Joseph Fredi said, the consequences can be severe.

Patients taking doses lower than they should are more likely to suffer from a stroke or similar complication. Patients taking higher doses than they should are more likely to experience bleeding.

Filing a Lawsuit over Eliquis Safety

A number of injured patients are choosing to file Eliquis safety lawsuits, alleging that Bristol-Myers Squibb knew about these Eliquis safety risks and yet failed to warn the public and the medical community about these risks.

Lawsuits allege that Bristol-Myers Squibb not only failed to warn about the risks, but even actively misled the public about Eliquis safety and efficacy.

Though filing an Eliquis safety lawsuit cannot undo the damage of serious Eliquis bleeding problems, or bring a loved one back to life, it may be able to help compensate for financial expenses incurred by medical bills or lost wages.

If you or someone you know has taken Eliquis or a similar medication and has since suffered from major Eliquis bleeding problems, you may be able to file an Eliquis safety lawsuit.