A woman has filed a lawsuit against Janssen Pharmaceuticals, its parent company Johnson & Johnson, Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals, and their related companies after she allegedly suffered a Xarelto hematoma while taking the popular blood thinner.

Plaintiff Bonnie C. filed her Xarelto lawsuit as part of the Xarelto multidistrict litigation currently underway in Louisiana federal court. The lawsuit states that Bonnie took Xarelto between July 2015 and April 2016 to treat the risk of stroke associated with her atrial fibrillation.

As a result of taking the medication, the lawsuit alleges, Connie suffered a Xarelto hematoma which led to a life-threatening irreversible bleed and related severe pain and suffering.

Blood thinners like Xarelto are designed to help treat patients who suffer from atrial fibrillation, pulmonary embolism and deep vein thrombosis, all of these patients have a vulnerability to suffering from blood clots which may lead to stroke or heart attack. These events can be fatal.

Xarelto works by blocking the body’s natural clotting mechanisms and allows the blood to be thinned and flow freely without risk of clot. However, this same mechanism of blocking the body’s clotting mechanisms can prove to be of great concern when the body actually needs to make a clot.

Patients taking Xarelto may suffer from internal bleeding issues in the brain and gastrointestinal system that can continue for long periods of time. Some patients “bleed out” and suffer fatal injuries, while others may sustain serious injuries but their lives are spared.

The lawsuit states, “As a result of the foregoing acts or omissions, the Plaintiff was caused to suffer serious and dangerous side effects including inter alia, life-threatening bleeding, as well as other severe and personal injuries which are permanent and lasting in nature, physical pain and mental anguish, including diminished enjoyment of life.” Bonnie’s Xarelto hematoma caused blood to pool abnormally outside of her blood vessels.

The lawsuit goes on to state that the FDA’s decision to approve the blood thinning drug for market release was based on a number of flawed studies. The complaint says the information contained in these studies, had it been properly presented to the FDA, would have supported the notion that Xarelto comes with severe risks not adequately disclosed to the public and medical community.

One major complaint in the lawsuits in the Xarelto multidistrict litigation is that the manufacturer failed to state that their was no way to reverse the anti-clotting mechanisms of Xarelto to restore the body’s natural clotting ability.

Warfarin, the predecessor drug to Xarelto, can have its anti-clotting mechanism reversed with the administration of an antidote. Fresh frozen plasma or intravenous vitamin K can be administered as a reversal agent for warfarin, allowing the body to make necessary clots again.

Xarelto, however has no such agent to reverse the drug’s effects. As a result, in her Xarelto hematoma lawsuit, Bonnie has brought forth a number of allegations against the defendants including negligence, strict products liability, breach of express warranty, breach of implied warranties, fraudulent misrepresentation, fraudulent concealment, negligent misrepresentation, fraud and deceit and violation of consumer protection laws.

The plaintiff is seeking compensatory damages for pain, suffering, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment of life and other non-economic damages, an award of economic damages, punitive and/or exemplary damages, pre-and post-judgment interest, attorneys’ fees and costs and any additional relief as deemed just and proper by the Court.

The Xarelto Hematoma Lawsuit is Case No. 2:17-cc-10315, and is part of the Xarelto MDL In re: Xarelto (Rivaroxaban) Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2592 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana.