Drosperinone Oral Contraceptives And Wrongful Death Lawsuits

According to the Guttmacher Institute, 62 percent of American women use a contraceptive to avoid unwanted pregnancy. The majority of these women uses a non-permanent contraceptive, and oral drugs have remained popular since 1982. Unfortunately, some oral contraceptives can cause serious injury or even death. Learn more about the effects of certain oral contraceptives and why some manufacturers now face wrongful death lawsuits.

How drosperinone works

Oral contraceptives are popular because they are cheap, easy to use, and effective at preventing unwanted pregnancies. Indeed, with perfect use, only 0.3 percent of women using an oral contraceptive will become pregnant while using the drug.

Some oral contraceptives feature two hormones called drosperinone and ethinyl estradiol. These hormones work together to stop the woman's egg developing fully each month, which prevents pregnancy. In some cases, doctors also prescribe the drug to stop severe premenstrual syndrome in women over the age of 14.

One drosperinone brand features 24 active pills with hormones and four inactive pills. This increases the dose of hormones in the woman's body during the month.

Life-threatening side effects

Some women using drosperinone experience mild side effects, including nausea, headache and dizziness. These symptoms often subside after time. Unfortunately, more severe side effects can lead to serious injury or death.

Blood clots pose a serious health risk. A blood clot can sometimes break up and move up to the brain. This type of clot can then restrict blood flow to the brain, which can cause a stroke. Stroke is one of the most common causes in death for women, affecting 55,000 more women each year than men.

Blood clots can also travel to the lungs, blocking the pulmonary arteries. When this happens, your lungs find it harder to supply oxygen to the body, resulting in a condition called pulmonary embolism. People with blood clots can also suffer from a heart attack.

Some people using drosperinone have also gone on to suffer from gall bladder disease. Drosperinone can increase the level of cholesterol in bile, causing gallstones to form.

What the FDA says

In 2012, the FDA issued a safety communication, which provided updated information about the risk of blood clots for women using drosperinone.

The FDA reported that it was not possible to consistently estimate the comparative risk of blood clots (and stroke) in women using drosperinone compared to other contraceptives. That aside, the FDA does warn healthcare professionals to assess the risk in each patient before prescribing the drug.           

As such, many women are at higher risk of serious side effects when using drosperinone contraceptives. A doctor may recommend against drosperinone contraceptives, especially if you:

  • Have kidney disease or liver disease
  • Have a history of blood clots
  • Use certain drugs (including ibuprofen)
  • Suffer with hyperkalemia (high potassium levels in the blood)
  • Have diabetes
  • Smoke

The FDA also criticized some of the advertising used to market these contraceptives.

Wrongful death lawsuits

Drug manufacturers must make sure that the products they sell are safe to use. These companies should take steps to warn patients about any side effects (serious or otherwise) they may face when using the drug. All product marketing has to be accurate and relevant and must not mislead consumers.

The families of several American women have filed lawsuits in the United States against drug manufacturers. These families claim that the manufacturers misled consumers by exaggerating the benefits of these oral contraceptives in marketing and advertising campaigns. Families also complain that the manufacturers did not make the potential side effects clear to women.The information that the FDA published was not available at the time when many women started to use drosperinone.

By February 2014, one manufacturer had settled 8,250 lawsuits in the United States alleging injuries from drosperinone contraceptives. Many other lawsuits remain ongoing, including wrongful death lawsuits for women who lost their lives.

Oral contraceptives can effectively lower the risk of pregnancy, but these drugs can also lead to severe and even fatal side effects. If your wife, mom or daughter has lost her life after using drosperinone, contact a trained wrongful death attorney at a site like http://www.sarkisianfleming.com for more advice.


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