A Xarelto bellwether trial began Monday, Aug. 14, 2017 to determine whether the drug’s manufacturers failed to properly warn patients of the drug’s bleeding risks.

One plaintiff, a 69-year-old Mississippi woman, says Xarelto caused her to incur internal gastrointestinal bleeding and anemia. She had been prescribed the blood thinner to treat a blood clot.

Xarelto belongs to a new breed of anticoagulants called Factor Xa inhibitors. The drug maker promotes uniform doses in everyone, but some people can tolerate it better than others. One of the more dangerous Xarelto side effects is bleeding, which can range from minor bleeding all the way to fatal bleedouts.

Dora M.’s complaint echoes those of other patients who accuse the drug’s manufacturers of failing to warn patients that Xarelto increased the risks of brain and gastrointestinal bleeding when used as directed.

In Dora’s Xarelto bellwether trial, attorneys will say that a Prothrombin Time (PT) test should have been used to ascertain a patient’s risks for bleeding. Dora alleges Xarelto’s makers failed to instruct doctors to perform this screening. Defendants Bayer and Janssen have insisted the PT test is not a reliable predictor of internal bleeding issues.

Xarelto Bellwether Trial Could Impact Thousands

More than 18,000 lawsuits have been consolidated so that attorneys can present evidence through the federal government’s MDL (multidistrict litigation) process. A bellwether trial is a test case that can help other litigants gauge potential settlement value among their claims.

In two other Xarelto bellwether trials, both Bayer and Janssen Pharmaceuticals, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, were cleared of liability among allegations Xarelto caused internal bleeding injuries and in some cases, death.

In this third Xarelto bellwether trial, attorneys plan to present evidence that doctors in other countries have been using the PT test since 2013 to determine which patients would be most likely to incur internal bleeding complications. Doctors in the U.S. allegedly were not provided this crucial information.

Xarelto Bellwether Trials Allege Drug is Dangerous

In the first Xarelto bellwether trial, plaintiff Joseph B. said he received Xarelto to treat atrial fibrillation. He alleges he experienced life-threatening gastrointestinal bleeding within a month of starting the blood thinner. He was hospitalized and needed blood transfusions and subsequent medical attention to get the bleeding under control.

In the second Xarelto bellwether trial, plaintiff Joseph O. faulted Johnson & Johnson for not providing an antidote for Xarelto patients who experienced uncontrollable internal bleeding. Joseph’s wife had been taking the anticoagulant for just one month when she died of a brain hemorrhage.

Even though juries did not find the makers of Xarelto liable for internal bleeding injuries in those two initial bellwether trials, attorneys and patients are determined to hold the drug’s manufacturers responsible for its dangers.

A jury of five men and four women is hearing Dora’s case in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi.