If you look around, it doesn't take too long to figure out that the world is full of unsafe drugs. Even if you're talking about over-the-counter drugs, there are plenty of examples out there of medications that can have very serious, even deadly, side effects. For example, it's been known for many years that giving young people and teenagers aspirin when they have certain ailments may result in Rye syndrome, a potentially deadly condition. If you check any modern bottle of aspirin, you'll see a warning that discloses this danger. Keeping unsafe drugs on the market is all about disclosing the danger.

Why Disclosure Matters

Patients have the right to assume a certain degree of risk in the pursuit of better health. This applies to medical procedures of all types, not just drugs. For example, there is a certain degree of risk involved with liposuction. Even though this is a cosmetic procedure, millions of people have had the procedure done to improve their appearance. They accepted the risk and, if they suffered the side effects of this procedure, the responsibility lies on their shoulders and no one else's. This isn't always the case with dangerous drugs.

Unsafe drugs include a variety of medications. Some of them are known to pose serious risks to the health—and even life—of the patient. In some cases, the condition that the patient suffers is severe enough that doctors deem it worth it to have them continue treatment with the drugs. As long as the patient understands and willingly accepts the risks, this is fine. There are cases, however, where someone is killed because of unsafe drugs and where lawsuits are the best options that the surviving family members have.

Unfortunately, the marketplace is full of unsafe drugs. Even though some of these drugs aren't used for life-and-death conditions, such as would be true of insulin or chemotherapy drugs, they sometimes remain on the market with a particular type of warning. This type of warning is called a black box warning. It is issued when the FDA determines that the drug carries with it the threat of devastating side effects of which the user should be aware. Among the drugs that carry this morning is Chantix.

There are some drugs that should have never been put on the market. There are others that, despite having some very serious side effects, remain on the market with a black box warning. When someone wasn't warned of the effects of potentially deadly drugs, their survivors will sometimes file a lawsuit for wrongful death. The situations that surround these cases are sometimes surprising.

When people talk about healthcare, they often talk about how lawsuits increase the costs. If you made a list of dangerous drugs that were withdrawn from the market only after people started suing, it would be very long. Prescription drugs are just one of the products that are covered under product liability law. This law ensures that manufacturers cannot release something onto the market and claim its safe without being held responsible for that product.

Some of the most dangerous products on the market are tools. These products are simply dangerous when they’re used exactly as intended. There’s no such thing as a safe table saw, for instance. The manufacturers of these devices have to ensure, however, that the products they manufacture are labeled clearly as to their hazards and that they’re made as safe as possible. Product liability lawsuits sometimes involve products that are dangerous under normal circumstances, but which are also manufactured to poor standards that result in them being even more dangerous than need be the case.

Dangerous and Recalled Drugs: The Facts

Product Liability and Prescription Drugs

Defective products are manufactured every day that harm thousands and thousands of people each year. Often times some of these defective products are prescription drugs. Whether the drug has been recalled or not consumers who are harmed by dangerous drugs are still protected by the product liability laws of our nation. At Rasansky Law Firm, we handle a variety of cases concerning product liability law all the time.

What Are The Dangerous And Recalled Drugs Out There?

Gardasil

As reported on InjuryBoard.com, a recent study by the Centers for Disease Control has revealed a new worry for pregnant women. The study is the first substantial one of its kind to take on the possible problems associated with taking antibiotics during pregnancy. Until recently, there was little known about the effects of antibiotics on a developing baby, but this new information points to links between antibiotics and birth defects.

The FDA reported numerous complaints of inaccuracies when using the Philips Avalon Fetal Monitors, Models FM20, FM30, FM40, and FM50 with the ultrasound transducer. In Septeber, Philips issued an Important Device Safety Alert. Inaccurate output readings may lead to unnecessary interventions, failure to identify the need for interventions, and failure to identify fetal distress. The complaints most commonly occur during the second stage of labor.

The makers of Tylenol have recalled more than 20 types of children's and infant's medications as a precaution against possible contamination. The liquid products were being voluntarily pulled from stores and warehouses because bacteria were detected in one of the inactive ingredients, the company said.

The ingredient with the bacteria was not used in packaged Tylenol products sold in stores, but was manufactured at the same time. The company did not announce whether any children were affected by the medicines.

Eli Lilly & Co. agreed to settle, on confidential terms, lawsuits filed by seven states alleging the company improperly marketed its antipsychotic drug Zyprexa, a court-appointed official said.

Zyprexa, Lilly’s best-selling drug, has been the subject of federal and state investigations into whether the company marketed the medicine, approved for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, for unapproved, or off-label, uses.