A New Jersey Jury awarded $25 million dollars to the plaintiff in an Accutane lawsuit. This lawsuit was filed by Andrew McCarrell of Moody, Alabama. The plaintiff had developed inflammatory bowel disease after he took this drug for acne treatment in his 20’s.

Accutane or isotretinoin has been associated with different side effects after being approved by FDA. It was approved by FDA for treatment of nodular acne, a severe form of acne, in 1982. Since then it has been linked to many controversies regarding side effects such as birth defects if used by pregnant females, psychiatric problems leading to even suicide and inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) such as ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. It has been also linked with problems in functioning of other systems in the body such as liver, kidney, cardiovascular system and immune system.

Andrew McCarrell sued Hoffman La Roche alleging that it did not provide sufficient warning to the users regarding the severe side effects of the drug in 2007. He claimed that due to use of Accutane he had developed inflammatory bowel disease. A jury awarded him with a compensation of $2.62 million. Hoffmann-La Roche appealed against this verdict and the court ordered for new trial in this case. This overturned the compensation awarded to Andrew McCarrell. The verdict of this new trial came in McCarrell’s favor. He was awarded  compensatory damage of $25 million. This decision was unanimously taken by the jury. He was also awarded with $159,000 for past medical expenses.

Hoffman La Roche recalled the drug Accutane from the market as a result of mounting number of lawsuits against it. It cited competition from manufacturers of its generic drug and expenses in defending itself in numerous lawsuits as the reason to stop production.

This has given a blow to La Roche as the compensation awarded in different Accutane lawsuits has mounted to around $55 million. It is expected to mount even higher in coming days as number of lawsuits increasing day by day.

After it was approved by U.S. Food and Drug Administration for treatment of acne, Accutane has been used by more than 13 million people. It has caused birth defects or abortion in most of the cases, where women took this drug during pregnancy. It has also caused psychiatric problems in patients using this drug leading to depression and even suicide in some cases. It has been widely linked with severe inflammatory bowel disorders. Studies had also revealed its link with inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD).  It has lead to several Accutane lawsuits against La Roche.

It is estimated many class action lawsuits are in waiting. According to an estimate there are around 5000 person injury claims to be settled by Hoffman La Roche. La Roche has been accused of faulty marketing of the Accutane and failing to warn users of its severe side effects. Though it has stopped manufacturing Accutane, La Roche is expected to face several Accutane lawsuits in future.

 

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