On March 2, 2018, drug makers Biogen and Abbvie announced that they were withdrawing Zinbryta from the market. The voluntary Zinbryta recall was issued based on reports linking the drug to conditions like encephalitis, liver failure, Stevens Johnson Syndrome (SJS), and other conditions.

There have been 12 cases reported of patients who took Zinbryta developing encephalitis, an inflammation of the brain tissue. Tragically, three of those cases were fatal.

About Zinbryta

Zinbryta is a prescription drug used to treat relapsing forms of multiple sclerosis (MS) in adults. The drug is known by the generic name daclizumab. Generally, the drug was used by patients who have not responded well to at least two other multiple sclerosis drugs. It was introduced into the market in 2016.

Multiple sclerosis is a condition in which the body’s immune system attacks and damages the protective sheath around nerve cells in the central nervous system (brain and spinal cord), the way the immune system would normally attack a virus or foreign invader in the body.

Zinbryta helps manage multiple sclerosis by binding to immune cells and reducing their activity, so they are less able to attack the protective sheaths of the nerve cells.

Zinbryta Complications

Since the drug came on the market, patients have reported numerous complications of the drug. Those complications were so severe that they resulted in the Zinbryta recall of 2018. Complications associated with Zinbryta include:

• Immune reactions including encephalitis (inflammation of the brain tissue)
• Liver injury, including liver failure
• Serious skin reactions including erythema multiforme, an early form of Stevens Johnson Syndrome (SJS). In turn, Stevens Johnson Syndrome can turn into Toxic Epidermal Necrolysis (TEN), a serious and possibly life-threatening disorder affecting the skin and membranes

Since Zinbryta’s approval in 2016, the FDA has said that it was aware that the drug had a “complex safety profile.” After its initial approval, a black box warning was added to the drug’s label, alerting patients to the risk of liver damage and immune disorders when taking this drug.

Additionally, because of Zinbryta’s risks to human health, the FDA recommended that the drug only be used after a patient had tried at least two other multiple sclerosis drugs. The drug was then made only available through a restricted distribution program, after a Risk Evaluation and Mitigation Strategy determined that the drug indeed did come with significant risks.

However, it was not until 2018 that Biogen and Abbvie issued a voluntary Zinbryta recall.

Zinbryta Recall Lawsuit Investigation

Lawyers are now investigating the possibly of a Zinbryta lawsuit. Since research and reports showed that Zinbryta was dangerous to human health, Abbvie and Biogen may have known long before the 2018 recall that the drug was dangerous.

In some cases, if drug companies are found to have known that a drug was dangerous, but continued to sell it anyway, the companies can be held liable for patient injury.

If you were diagnosed with a number of serious side effects after taking the multiple sclerosis drug Zinbryta, you may have a legal claim. Filing a Zinbryta lawsuit could help you gain compensation for injury you suffered as a result of your use of Zinbryta.