New Blood Thinner Linked to Blood Clots, Uncontrolled Bleeding

New Blood Thinner Linked to Blood Clots, Uncontrolled Bleeding

By Robert J. Boumis

The new blood thinner medication Xarelto has been linked to serious complications, according to postmarket surveillance reports.

All drugs in the United States are subject to postmarket surveillance, a process of reporting side effects and complications once a drug hits the market. Sometimes, side effects are relatively rare, and not obvious until large numbers of people use the drug. For this reason, the legally-required clinical testing does not always reveal serious side effects, since even the largest clinical trial is rarely anywhere near the size of the number of people that will use the drug once it finds its way to the market.

Postmarket surveillance for Xarelto has allegedly revealed several complications. As a blood thinner or anticoagulant, the drug is designed to lessen blood’s ability to clot. Since some serious health problems can be traced to blood clotting, like stroke, pulmonary embolism, and some types of heart attack, this kind of drug can save a life — when it’s working correctly. Xarelto is intended to prevent the risk of such complications after major surgery, a time when many patients are more prone to such adverse events.

However, postmarket surveillance has found instances of possible serious complications among the users of Zareleto. For some patients, particularly those that have undergone certain types of surgery, there actually appears to be an increased risk of blood-clot related diseases.

Additionally, Xarelto may carry the risk of uncontrolled bleeding. This is a theoretical risk with all blood thinner medications. However, many older anticoagulants have reversal agents available. For example, if uncontrollable bleeding occurs with Warfarin, high does of intravenous vitamin K1, a specific form of vitamin K, can reverse its blood-thinning properties so a patient can stop bleeding to combat this complication. However, Xarelto lacks such an agent, which makes it much more difficult for physicians to control patients’ bleeding in the event of an emergency. The accompanying information for Xarelto does not contain any warnings about the lack of a reversal agent.

In light of the individual lawsuits being field against the manufacturers of Xarelto, a class action lawsuit investigation has been launched to explore the possibility of mass legal action. Such a lawsuit could allege that the manufactures were aware of the serious risks allegedly linked to this drug, and further allege that manufactures did not do enough to protect the public from these risks, or may have actively downplayed these risks, preventing patients and physicians from having the information they needed to make an informed decision.

If you or a loved one have suffered from any of the following:

• death
• internal bleeding or hemorrhage
• pulmonary embolism
• deep vein thrombosis
• stroke

…then you may have a case. To explore your options, please visit the Xarelto Side Effects (Bleeding, Blood Clots) Class Action Lawsuit Investigation. Here, you can enter information for a legal review by a trained expert with a background in this type of litigation. The initial consultation is completely free of charge, and from it you can receive additional guidance on the best steps to take in your exact situation.

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