An Ohio woman has filed a new Benicar lawsuit alleging Daiichi Sankyo’s blood-thinning drug caused her chronic diarrhea and dehydration. The plaintiff has accused Benicar’s manufacturers of downplaying or concealing certain dangerous side effects associated with the medication. The new lawsuit will join over 200 similar Benicar lawsuits that have been consolidated in a multidistrict litigation before the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey.
Benicar, Daiichi Sankyo’s blockbuster olmesartan, was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2002 to lower blood pressure in patients with hypertension. Unfortunately for Benicar users, the drug may cause severe side effects. The most common of these are diarrhea and dehydration, though some patients have experienced worse health issues, such as sprue-like enteropathy. Sprue-like enteropathy is a gastrointestinal condition that can lead to chronic diarrhea, vomiting, and excessive weight loss. In 2013, the FDA released a safety communication in which it required Daiichi Sankyo and the makers of other olmesartan-based blood pressure drugs to include a warning about intestinal health risks on their products’ labels.
The plaintiff behind the new Benicar lawsuit says she began using Benicar in 2004, and thereafter experienced severe gastrointestinal complications, including chronic diarrhea and dehydration. The plaintiff claims Daiichi Sankyo’s drug caused her both physical and economic damage. As in other Benicar lawsuits, the plaintiff alleges Daiichi Sankyo fraudulently marketed its drug, hiding important information about the health risks it posed.
Consult your doctor or physician if you have any concerns about your medications. If you or a loved one suffered from gastrointestinal complications after taking Benicar, you may be eligible to join the growing Benicar multidistrict litigation. Contact the lawyers at Lopez McHugh today for a free consultation and find out whether you may qualify for legal compensation.
