Feldman & Pinto’s personal injury lawyers co-represent plaintiffs in a Xarelto mass tort trial that commenced in Philadelphia state court on November 6, 2017. Xarelto is a dangerous anticoagulant (blood thinner), manufactured by Bayer and marketed by Janssen, that lacks a reversal agent to stop excessive bleeding. Advertised as an alternative to other blood thinners (such as Coumadin), Xarelto is often prescribed to prevent blood clots in patients suffering from any of a number of conditions, including:
- deep vein thrombosis (DVT)
- atrial fibrillation
- pulmonary embolus (PE)
- risk of blood clots following hip or knee replacement
Xarelto’s Lack of Reversal Agent Can Lead to Fatal Bleeding
There is a crucial and potentially deadly difference between Xarelto and many other blood thinners. Pradaxa and warfarin, for example, have antidotes to reverse the excessive internal bleeding that can occur with anticoagulant use. Xarelto does not. The absence of a reversal agent for heavy bleeding caused by Xarelto can lead to a patient’s death.
While some ads for Xarelto did acknowledge a risk of excessive bleeding, they failed to disclose the lack of a bleeding reversal agent for the drug. Legendary pro golfer, Arnold Palmer, was a prominent TV promoter of Xarelto. Ironically, Palmer suffered from severe colon bleeding that some speculate resulted from Xarelto and contributed to his death in 2016.
Plaintiffs in Xarelto lawsuits have alleged that:
- Xarelto marketing and product labeling failed to adequately disclose Xarelto’s irreversible bleeding dangers, and
- original package labeling for Xarelto did not contain a warning regarding the absence of a bleeding antidote