Avandia Class Action Lawsuit Filed in Canada
August 29th, 2008 • Filed Under: News • 4 Comments
A class action lawsuit filed this week against the makers of Avandia and the Canadian government alleges that the popular diabetes drug increases the risk of heart failure, heart attack and death for older users.
The Avandia class action lawsuit was filed on Wednesday in Nova Scotia Supreme Court in Halifax by a Nova Scotia man who claims that the potential risks associated with the drug were not properly disclosed and that the drug maker should have known that it was unsafe for diabetes patients.
Avandia (rosiglitazone), which is manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline, PLC, has been one the best selling medications worldwide in recent years. It is used to treat Type 2 Diabetes, but recent studies have demonstrated that Avandia side effects increase the risk of heart attacks by 43%.
The class action lawsuit over Avandia in Canada also names the federal government on the basis that Health Canada, which approved the drug in 2001, is at least partially responsible for approving a drug label that fails to adequately disclose the heart risks associated with Avandia.
Many similar Avandia lawsuits have also been filed in the United States seeking compensation from GlaxoSmithKline for failing to adequately study their medication and warn about the heart risks. Some estimates suggest that as many as 100,000 heart attacks could have been caused by Avandia since it was approved by the FDA in the United States in 1999.
Avandia lawsuits filed in federal court on behalf of individual users who claim injuries as a result of heart attacks and other heart related problems have had their cases consolidated in a Multidistrict Litigation (MDL) for pretrial proceedings. The Avandia litigation is centralized in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, where GlaxoSmithKline is headquartered.
Comment by Vince on 22 September 2008:
I’ve been on Seroquel for several years now and am on a dose of 600 mg per night.
I really don’t know how this may have affected me. I was addicted to crack for several years and went in for treatment and have made a big stride in my life. I’m 2 1\2 years clean to this point.
Since I about 2003 give or take, I’ve been on Seroquel. I weighed an average of 130 lbs and am currently 210 lbs.
I really don’t know if my weight gain was due to Seroquel, or the fact that I’m eating on a regular basis because I’m not using drugs.
I do know that about 1\2 an hour after I take my night-time medication, I get the “munchies”.
Is this due to the medication?
I’d really like to know more about what this medication does and how it has affected me and if I should be consulting my doctor to check into the Diabetes issue. What else should I be looking for?
I know that my blood pressure is above average, I have above average Cholesterol, and several other problems that I’m afflicted with.
I have a heart condition (Paroxismal Atrial Fibrulation), a seizure disorder, depression, physcosis, ulcer problems, sleeping disorder, and I think that’s about it.
I take a handful of medications everyday to function.
Comment by Wendy on 6 November 2008:
I was on Avandia for a few years. Evenutally my doctor took me off after I had heard about the potential of a possible heart attack. Around that time, not sure the time line, I was taken to the hospital by ambulance with severe chest pains, unable to breathe and sweating terribly. At the hospital, they kept me for eight hours and it was determined it was not a heart attack, but not sure. I did see a specialist, had a bunch of tests and he decided it was probably not a heart attack, but still was not sure. He told me that if I had more symptons to come back and he would treat me symptionmatically. I have been fine since then, but have lived with that fear of it comin back. I was terrified when I could not breathe and the pain I was having. I live with diabetes, trying to get my blood sugars low and I am having problems getting my sugars low. I lost my job due to restructing and I cannot find work. No one wants to hire me at this stage in my life.
Comment by Barry on 18 November 2008:
I would PLEASE like to know if there is some kind of nice person out there that maybe beable toHELP?me to find out how to go about to find out what kind of hipreplacement i have had as i have already have had four OPERATION and two were becuase of loose cups and now i have some thing wrong with my left hip and that was done about two years ago Wrate from the beging there was always something wrong?I am getting realy tired of always being in PAINE. So could someone please HELP me out in one way or another.I would be realy gratful as i dont know what to do any more
Comment by Davis on 6 December 2008:
I have type 2 diabetes, I was on Avandia for about two years. I had no previous history of heart disease but in November of 2006 I had to have triple bypass surgery for blocked arteries