Miss. Man Files Pradaxa Wrongful Death Lawsuit

Miss. Man Files Pradaxa Wrongful Death Lawsuit

By Courtney Coren

A Mississippi man filed a Pradaxa lawsuit on behalf of his deceased wife claiming that the blood thinning medication caused the internal bleeding that claimed for his wife’s death. 

Rickie Bellanger sued Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals Inc. on Sept. 30 after his wife Iona Bellanger died while she was taking Pradaxa (dabigatran). Mrs. Bellanger began taking Pradaxa in August 2011 to reduce her risk of stroke and systemic embolism until April 14, 2012 when she suffered from life-threatening bleeding that took her life, the Pradaxa lawsuit claims. 

Before Pradaxa was approved in the United States, the only blood thinner available was warfarin, also known as Coumadin and Jantoven. The problem with warfarin is that it puts users at risk for severe bleeding and it doesn’t interact well with other types of medications and some foods. Pradaxa was introduced as an alternative to warfarin that does not come with any food restrictions and does not require regular blood tests. It went on the market in the United States after receiving U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) approval in October 2010.

The FDA approved Pradaxa after a long-term study was published in the New England Journal of Medicine showing that Pradaxa does lower the risk of stroke and systemic embolism better than warfarin, with the same hemorrhaging rate. However, the same study also showed that Pradaxa comes with an increased risk of heart attack. The study also found that “there was a significantly higher rate of major life threatening bleeding with (Pradaxa) at the 150-mg dose than with warfarin.”

Pradaxa works by blocking thrombin activity. Thrombin is the body’s central clotting agent, but Pradaxa disturbs the normal process that usually occurs in blood clotting. While this disruption thins the blood as intended, it ends up weakening the immune system, leaving Pradaxa patients at greater risk for viral infections such as the flu and myocarditis, another study published in The Journal of Clinical Investigation revealed. 

The Pradaxa lawsuit claims that Boehringer negligently or fraudulently represented the safety of the blood thinning medication to the FDA and the medical community by claiming that the tests performed on Pradaxa showed the medication to be safe and effective, while concealing the increased risks for heart attack and life-threatening bleeding. 

In the Pradaxa lawsuit, Mr. Bellanger charges Boehringer with knowingly hiding the defects of the medication so that doctors would be comfortable recommending and prescribing it. He accuses the company of displaying “a callous, reckless, willful, depraved indifference to health, safety and welfare” of its customers like Mrs. Bellanger, leading to injuries which caused her premature death a month before her 78th birthday.

The Pradaxa lawsuit is Rickie J. Bellanger, on behalf of the Estate of Iona M. Bellanger, deceased v. Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals Inc., et al., Case No. 3:13-cv-51369-DRH-SCW in the U.S. District Court of the Southern District of Illinois.

If you or someone you know has experienced negative side effects such as excessive bleeding or heart attack as a result of taking Pradaxa, legal options are available. Learn more and get a free legal consultation regarding a claim’s eligibility at the Pradaxa Internal Bleeding Class Action Lawsuit Investigation. Experienced legal professionals have access to medical experts to assess whether or not this blood thinner played a role in a serious viral infection, so act now. 

All medical device, dangerous drug and medical class action and lawsuit news updates are listed in the Drug and Medical Device section of Top Class Actions.