A recent Xarelto hemorrhage lawsuit claims that the blood thinner is defective and causes uncontrollable bleeding events.

Plaintiff Carl C. says he took Xarelto from May 2016 to January 2017. On Jan. 18, 2017, Carl allegedly experienced a Xarelto hemorrhage which caused bleeding in his brain. According to Carl, his intraparenchymal hemorrhage was a direct result of his treatment with Xarelto.

Xarelto is an anticoagulant (blood thinning) drug which was introduced in the United States in July 2011. The drug is part of the drug class called “New Oral Anticoagulants”. These drugs are the newer generation of blood thinners which are marketed as meant to replace warfarin, the safe, established standard for blood thinners which has been used and trusted for 60 years.

Warfarin, although effective, carries several negatives including intensive required blood testing and a strict diet. Newer blood thinners like Xarelto aim to capitalize on these downfalls to market their own products. Xarelto allegedly took this approach by marketing the “Xarelto Difference” – once a day dosing, no blood testing, and no dietary constraints.

However, clinical studies allegedly show that Xarelto is safer and more effective when used with blood monitoring, dose adjustments, and twice a day dosing. The Institute for Safe Medication Practices allegedly noted in its 2012 first quarter QuarterWatch that, during the approval process, FDA reviewers “questioned the convenient once-a-day dosing scheme [of Xarelto], saying blood level studies had shown peaks and troughs that could be eliminated by twice-a-day dosing.”

Instead of adapting the usage of the drug to decrease the risk of Xarelto hemorrhage, drug manufacturers allegedly chose to market unsafe treatment methods in order to make their product seem better than warfarin. Carl argues that this choice represents Xarelto manufacturers prioritizing profits over patient safety.

According to the Xarelto hemorrhage lawsuit, the drug has been linked to a variety of adverse events. Within the first year that the drug was on the market, there were allegedly 1,080 serious adverse events reported with Xarelto. Sixty-five of the adverse events allegedly resulted in death. Of the events involving Xarelto hemorrhage, eight percent allegedly resulted in deaths.

These alarming numbers continued in the following years with a total of 2,081 new adverse event reports allegedly filed with the FDA in Xarelto’s first full calendar year on the market. 151 of these events reportedly resulted in death. For comparison, 56 deaths were reported with warfarin in the same period.

Carl argues that drug manufacturers know Xarelto is a dangerous drug but continue to push for it to stay on the market because of the profits it brings. These profits are allegedly made at the expense of consumers and are gained through the use of deceptive marketing and advertising.

Consumers are allegedly led to believe that Xarelto is a safe blood thinning option which competes with warfarin. Carl argues that this is completely false and that Xarelto is instead a dangerous, defective medication.

The Xarelto Hemorrhage Lawsuit is Case No. 2:18-cv-13559 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana.