A man who took Uloric for the treatment of gout and suffered a heart attack has filed a lawsuit against the drug’s manufacturer, Takeda Pharmaceuticals. Studies have shown a strong association between Uloric and serious cardiovascular injury, including cardiac arrest (both fatal and non-fatal), stroke and myocardial ischemia, or oxygen deprivation due to reduced blood circulation.

Plaintiff Mark G. claims that Takeda misrepresented the drug as safe when the company knowingly manufactured a product it knew to be defective. Mark also accuses Takeda of concealing that information and failing to warn doctors and patients about the Uloric’s risks.

Case Background

According to the complaint, Mark was first prescribed Uloric in 2015 following a diagnosis of gout. Around June 2017, Mark says he suffered a serious heart attack that required hospitalization and major medical attention.

Mark now claims that Takeda ignored adverse event reports from all over the country. Instead, he says, the drugmaker continued to market the product without conducting any studies to learn more about possible connections between Uloric and cardiovascular injuries. The complaint also claims that Takeda did not inform doctors and patients about safer, alternative treatments.

About the Defendant

Japan-based Takeda Pharmaceuticals has been in business for more than a century. In addition to Uloric, the company has been targeted in litigation over two products: Actos, a diabetic medication with links to bladder cancer, and Prevacid, a proton pump inhibitor used to treat acid reflux disease and associated with an extensive list of serious side effects, reports Drug Safety News.

Uloric, Gout and the Heart Attack Connection

The Mayo Clinic says gout is a type of inflammatory arthritis brought on by elevated levels of uric acid in the blood. While common in people who consume too much meat and alcohol and are obese, it can also be caused by genetic factors or co-morbidities, such as diabetes.

Uloric, also known as febuxostat, is one of two medications commonly prescribed to the treat gout. Uloric is indicated only for gout patients whose bodies are unable to tolerate allopurinol, the usual first-line treatment for this condition. Common known side effects include joint pain, diarrhea, nausea, headaches, skin rash and liver inflammation.

The connection between Uloric and heart attack was first noted in Novemver 2017, after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) notified the public of the results from a required safety study when the drug first received market approval. That study, which began in 2009, found that patients taking Uloric suffered a higher rate of cardiovascular injuries than those treated with allopurinol.

In February 2019, the FDA began requiring Uloric package labels to carry a boxed warning about cardiovascular risks.

Holding Drug Companies Accountable

Takeda is only one of many pharmaceutical companies facing lawsuits over dangerous and defective medications. Plaintiffs are seeking compensation for injuries, disability, loss of earning capacity and consortium and pain and suffering in addition to punitive damages.

The Uloric Lawsuit is Case No. 1:19-cv-04347, Illinois Northern District Court.