Motion To Consolidate Propecia Litigation Over Sexual Dysfunction Filed

A plaintiff is calling for the centralization and consolidation of all federal Propecia lawsuits, which have been filed by men throughout the United States who developed erectile dysfunction or other sexual problems after taking Merck’s hair-loss drug. 

The Propecia litigation currently includes about two dozen complaints filed in eight different federal district courts, and Propecia lawyers investigating potential claims expect that hundreds of additional claims are likely to be filed in the coming months.

The complaints all involve similar allegations that Propecia side effects caused plaintiffs to develop sexual dysfunction that has persisted long after stopping the drug.

Men who took the hair loss formula say that Merck failed to warn consumers of the risks of long-term erectile dysfunction from Propecia, as well as loss of libido, infertility, anxiety, depression and other problems.

In the United States, Merck has suggested warned that the sexual side effects of Propecia are temporary, indicating that cases observed during clinical trials resolved after users stopped taking the medication. However, Merck has been forced to provide additional warnings to men in certain other countries, indicating that post-marketing reports have indicated that some men experience sexual problems that persist.

The motion to consolidate was filed by plaintiff Christopher Masefield on December 6, with the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation. Masefield is asking that the federal Propecia litigation be centralized and consolidated in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York, or, in the alternative, in the U.S. District for the Western District of Washington.

Masefield argues that centralizing the cases as part of an MDL, or multidistrict litigation, would serve the convenience of the parties, prevent duplicative discovery and avoid conflicting pretrial rulings.

Propecia (finasteride) is approved for the treatment of male pattern baldness. It is a low-dose version of Proscar, approved in 1992 for the treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia.

In March, researchers from the U.S. published a study in the Journal of Sexual Medicine that found Propecia was linked to sexual problems in men. Researchers indicated that the class of drugs known as 5-alpha-reductase inhibitors can cause loss of libido, depression erectile dysfunction, reduced semen production and growth of male breast tissue. They also indicated that in some cases these side effects appeared to be permanent.

These findings appear to back up the growing number of complaints filed and numerous post-marketing adverse event reports filed by men who have experienced long-term Propecia impotence, infertility and other sexual dysfunction even after the medication is stopped.