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Pradaxa Drugs Linked to Stroke, Heart Attack, Bleeding Events, and Even Death
Have you or a loved one been taking Pradaxa?
Have you or a loved one experienced stroke, hemorrhaging, ulcers, or any other type of bleeding event after taking Pradaxa?
Pradaxa is a "direct thrombin inhibitor" manufactured by Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals and is prescribed to patients who suffer from a heart rhythm problem called atrial fibrillation. These patients are at an increased risk of having a stroke and so are, therefore, prescribed a blood thinner. It has been marketed and used as a substitute for the popular medication Coumadin because it does not require the regular treatment and monitoring that Coumadin requires, thereby making it a much more convenient option. Unlike Coumadin, however, Pradaxa cannot reverse its effects and can make the patient's blood too thin, causing hemorrhaging, stroke, or even death.
If a patient taking Coumadin has a bleeding event, the effects of the blood-thinner can be reversed by administering doses of Vitamin K. If someone is taking Pradaxa, however, there is no way to reverse its effects and patients are at risk of bleeding complications and fatalities. Oddly enough, Pradaxa has been found to cause the very thing that it is prescribed to prevent.
CBS News Reports That Pradaxa Patients Have 33% Higher Risk of Heart Attack
A January 2012 report on CBS News online stated: "Patients taking the new anti-clotting drug Pradaxa have a 33% higher risk of heart attack or severe symptoms of heart disease than do patients taking warfarin. The finding, from Cleveland Clinic researchers Ken Uchino, MD, and Adrian V. Hernandez, MD, PhD, is based on data from seven clinical trials that enrolled 30,514 patients.
...In an editorial accompanying the study in the Jan. 9 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, journal editor Rita Redberg, MD, notes that this isn't the first safety warning issued for Pradaxa.
...The FDA is investigating an unusually large number of reports of serious bleeding linked to the drug. Japan and Australia already have issued a safety warning. The European Medicines Agency advises doctors to check patients' kidney function before prescribing Pradaxa. And last year the FDA warned patients that the drug breaks down quickly when removed from its original container."
Read the entire article here: http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-500368_162-57356568/study-higher-heart-attack-risk-from-pradaxa/
FiercePharma Reports: "Pradaxa Leads FDA MedWatch List of Fatalities"
In a June 6, 2012 article, FiercePharma notes that "Pradaxa resulted in more reports to the FDA of fatalities than any other drug last year. In fact, Pradaxa lead all other monitored drugs in several categories, including overall number of reports (3,781), deaths (542), hemorrhage (2,367), acute renal failure (291) and stroke (644), according to The Philadelphia Inquirer's health blog. The Inquirer cites a report from the Institute for Safe Medication Practices' QuarterWatch program, which gets its data from the FDA MedWatch reporting system."
Read the entire article here: http://www.fiercepharma.com/story/pradaxa-leads-fda-medwatch-list-fatalities/2012-06-06
Attorney Marc Stewart's Family Experience with Coumadin:
My own mother, Mary Ann Stewart, had undergone a heart valve replacement in 1994. Afterwards, her doctors placed her on Coumadin. The idea was to thin the blood so that it did not form clots around the artificial heart valve. My mother hated Couamdin because she was always freezing and she was required to alter her diet. Also, she had to go to her family practitioner once a week for blood tests to assess her PT and INR. The Coumadin dosage always had to be adjusted weekly so that it did not thin-out her blood to a dangerous level.
Many Coumadin patients today have the same complaints that my own mother had. Coumadin is a very inconvenient and uncomfortable medication. This is precisely why Pradaxa has so much appeal for patients...and the manufacturer's marketing department. With Pradaxa, the patient is not required to have weekly finger sticks to check levels and adjust dosage. You just take the medication and the work is done. The problem is that despite this alleged convenience, a patient's blood can still become overly-thinned to a dangerous level. Pradaxa patients have been seen often in emergency rooms with hemorrhagic strokes in their brain and other bleeding complications.
If you or someone you love or know has had complications such as stroke or hemorrhage after taking the drug Pradaxa, we should talk right away.
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Please note: Marc Stewart Law, PLLC does not intend in any way, by this website or otherwise, to dissuade anyone from taking medication that has been prescribed by his/her doctor. Please contact your doctor immediately regarding questions and issues relating to your health. As everyone's case is unique and different, it could be dangerous to discontinue medications, especially in an abrupt fashion. Patients taking Pradaxa should visit with their physician to determine whether Pradaxa is right for them and their specific situation.
