By Brian Orelli | More Articles December 31, 2012 | The Food and Drug Administration announced today that it has approved Johnson & Johnson's (NYSE: JNJ) tuberculosis drug Sirturo, the first drugto gain approval from the agency in 40 years that tackles the disease using a new mechanism of action.. Sirturo will be used as part of a combination therapy to treat adults infected with bacteria that are resistant to other drugs. The drug was approved based on just two phase 2 trials because of the unmet need for new antibiotics. In one trial, the drug cut the median time for treatment to 83 days, compared to 125 days for patients that received placebo. Most of the potential patients reside outside the U.S. -- in 2011, there were only 10,528 patients that became sick with tuberculosis in the U.S., compared to 9 million worldwide -- and the drug will only be used on the subset of those who won't respond to currently available treatments because of potential side effects. The drug can affect the heart's electrical activity, which can lead to issues with heart rhythm. There were also more deaths in the Sirturo-treated group than the group treated with placebo, … Continue reading →

Dallas, TX (PRWEB) January 01, 2013 The prescription drug resource center DrugRisk.com has added information to its already comprehensive online database showing use of the birth control drugs Yaz and Yasmin may be increasing, despite warnings about blood clot risks and the settlement of thousands of injury claims by Bayer. DrugRisk seeks to improve public safety by providing the latest prescription drug warnings, recalls, studies and litigation news. We were surprised to learn that more people used Yaz in 2012 than 2011 despite all the warnings and injury settlements, said DrugRisk representative Ryan Mayer. The news, from the Healthcare Business Development section of the latest financial report from Bayer, indicates the company sold $277 million worth of Yaz and Yasmin in the third quarter of 2012 versus $275 million in 2011.* The resource center had previously advised of new warnings by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists that birth control pills containing drospirenone, such as Yaz and Yasmin, may have a higher risk of causing blood clots.** DrugRisk has learned that Yaz lawsuits are being consolidated to a special federal Multi-District Litigation court in Illinois. The formal case is known as Yasmin and Yaz (Drospirenone) Marketing, Sales Practices and … Continue reading →

Orlando, FL (PRWEB) January 01, 2013 The prescription drug resource center DrugRisk.com is announcing the addition of new information to its already comprehensive database for the blood thinner Pradaxa, after a federal court handling injury claims scheduled the next conference and the start of trials. DrugRisks goal is to improve consumer safety through education of the latest drug warnings, recalls, studies and litigation news. Therefore, we felt it important that patients know the latest updates in the ongoing lawsuits over alleged internal bleeding from Pradaxa, explained DrugRisk representative Ryan Mayer. The resource center had previously advised that the number of patients filing a Pradaxa lawsuit claiming internal bleeding has risen 50% since September.* The cases have now been moved to a special federal court in Illinois, formally known as MDL No. 2385, IN RE: Pradaxa Product Liability Litigation, Southern District of Illinois. Now, Judge David Herndon, who is overseeing the Pradaxa litigation, has scheduled the next conference for January 14th and the first trial for August 2014, according to Case Management Order Number 11, Judge David Herndon (In Re: Pradaxa (Dabigatran Etexilate) Products Liability Litigation MDL No. 2385) DrugRisk recently announced a warning by the U.S. FDA on December 19th, … Continue reading →

The Drug Risk Resource Center is the Webs largest source for information on prescription drug warnings, side effects and legal news. Visit http://www.DrugRisk.com. New York, NY (PRWEB) January 01, 2013 DrugRisks goal is to improve patient safety by sharing the latest drug warnings, recalls, studies and litigation news. Unfortunately weve seen an increasing amount of searches for NuvaRing side effects or NuvaRing lawsuits, which may indicate more women have been affected or want to know their legal options, explains DrugRisk representative Ryan Mayer. The resource center previously reported that as many as 1,028 patients have filed a NuvaRing lawsuit claiming blood clots in a special federal court in Missouri.* The formal case is known as In re: NuvaRing Products Liability Litigation, No. 08-md-1964, JPML, Eastern District Missouri. U.S. District Judge Rodney Sippel, who presides over the cases, recently delayed the start of trials to July 8, 2013.** Anyone who suffered blood clots, stroke, DVT or pulmonary embolism after using NuvaRing is urged to contact the DrugRisk Resource Center or speak with a lawyer about their legal rights as soon as possible. Experts have related vaginal rings like NuvaRing to higher blood clot risks than with traditional birth control pills. The … Continue reading →