A new Xarelto lawsuit was filed in Texas federal court against Janssen Research & Development and Bayer Pharmaceuticals. The Xarelto lawsuit is brought by Sara S. on behalf of the estate of Jerry S. and claims that the drug manufacturers negligently or fraudulently concealed risks associated with taking Xarelto.

According to the Xarelto lawsuit, Jerry began taking Xarelto in January 2013. Jerry’s medical provider prescribed Xarelto to treat Jerry’s atrial fibrillation, an irregular, often rapid heart beat condition that commonly causes poor blood flow. Approximately three months after Jerry began taking the blood thinner medication, he allegedly began to experience gastrointestinal bleeding and hemorrhaging. The Xarelto side effects lawsuit alleges that Jerry suffered a life-threatening, irreversible bleed due to taking Xarelto.

The Xarelto lawsuit claims that in the course of the defendants’ aggressive marketing approach, Janssen and Bayer overstated the efficacy of Xarelto and failed to adequately warn consumers and the medical community that no means existed to reverse the anticoagulant effects. According to U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) adverse event reports, Xarelto is one of the more dangerous anticoagulants currently sold on the American drug market. The claims the Xarelto lawsuit alleges against the pharmaceutical companies include negligence, strict product liability, breach of warranty, misrepresentation, and fraud and deceit.

History of Xarelto Bleeding Complications

Xarelto is an anticoagulant taken to reduce the risk of stroke and systemic embolism in patients with non-valvular atrial fibrillation, to treat deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism, and to reduce injury from blood clots in patients who undergo knee and/or hip replacement surgery. Xarelto is a part of a new generation of blood thinner that have been marketed as superior to the well-established blood thinner, Warfarin. Warfarin, unlike Xarelto, requires patients taking the drug to follow strict dietary restrictions and undergo periodic blood monitoring. But while Xarelto appears to require less blood monitoring, it has no known antidote for cases of uncontrolled bleeding. Warfarin users who experience internal bleeding, a potential side effect of may blood thinning medications, can be given a dose of vitamin K sometimes mixed with plasma to stop them from bleeding out. Although medical researchers are looking for a similar antidote to drugs like Xarelto, they haven’t found a solution yet.

The FDA approved Xarelto in July 2011. The Xarelto website claims that over 7 million people have been prescribed Xarelto worldwide since its approval, and that in 2013 along, over 1 million prescriptions had been written in the United States. Significant funds were spent by the defendants to market Xarelto to medical providers and the general public alike. The Xarelto lawsuit alleges that in 2013, Xarelto manufacturers spent approximately 11 million dollars on advertising. Xarelto sales for 2013 reached “blockbuster status” and approximated $2 billion. On a global scale, Xarelto is considered the leading anticoagulant.

Multiple Xarelto lawsuits have been filed against pharmaceutical companies like Janssen and Bayer for violating consumer protection laws. Victims of Xarelto side effects and family members who have allegedly lost loved ones to Xarelto complications are filing lawsuits in both state and federal courts. These plaintiffs hope to receive compensation for past and future medical bills as well as compensation for the pain and suffering they allege they were forced to endure.

The Xarelto Lawsuit is Case No. 6:15-cv-78, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas, Waco Division.