Plavix Bleeding Hemorrhaging
Plavix Bleeding Hemorrhaging Side Effects Lawsuits
Plavix Bleeding Hemorrhaging | Lawsuits, Lawyers | Side Effects: Cerebral Bleeding, Gastrointestinal Bleeding, Hemorrhaging, Thrombotic Thrombocytepenic Purpura (TTP)
Plavix-Aspirin Study halted due to High rate of Bleeding and death A study conducted by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) to determine if Plavix-aspirin therapy could prevent recurring strokes...Read More
Learn about Thrombotic Thrombocytopenic Purpura (TTP), a Plavix use side effect
If you take Plavix, you should be aware that it can cause serious bleeding and hemorrhaging, especially cerebral and gastrointestinal bleeding, in addition to Thrombotic Thrombocytepenic Purpura (TTP). Several studies have found that Plavix users have an alarmingly high rate of hemorrhaging, cerebral and gastrointestinal bleeding, and Thrombotic Thrombocytepenic Purpura (TTP) compared with people not taking the drug. In many cases, Plavix cerebral and gastrointestinal bleeding and hemorrhaging is serious enough to be life threatening.
If you took Plavix and suffered from cerebral bleeding, gastrointestinal bleeding or hemorrhaging, you may be eligible to receive compensation through a Plavix lawsuit. The attorneys at the personal injury law firm of Parker Waichman LLP are offering free legal consultations to victims of these serious Plavix side effects. We urge you to contact one of our Plavix lawyers today to protect your legal rights.
Plavix Gastrointestinal Bleeding and Hemorrhaging
Plavix (generic: clopidogrel bisulfate) was approved in 1997 for prevention of blood clots and to reduce the risk of heart attacks and strokes. Plavix is the sixth top selling drug in the U.S., with sales totaling $3.8 billion dollars. It is often prescribed in conjunction with low dose aspirin therapy to prevent heart attacks in high-risk patients.
Plavix's initial warning label made no mention of serious gastrointestinal bleeding. A recent study in the New England Journal of Medicine found that patients taking Plavix are 12 times more likely to suffer recurrent ulcers, gastrointestinal or cerebral bleeding from taking Plavix than those who received a combination of aspirin and a heartburn pill.
Another study conducted by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and published in the Archives of Internal Medicine found the risk of hemorrhaging among Plavix-aspirin patients was significantly higher than thought. For years, it was thought the Plavix-aspirin combination would cause less bleeding than an alternative blood thinner, Warfarin.
While the CDC study did find that Warfarin was associated with a higher rate of bleeding than the Plavix-aspirin combo, the combination therapy did not do as well in that area as was expected. For both regimens, the number of hospital admissions because of bleeding was similar. And bleeding-related visits to emergency department visits were only 50 percent lower for those on the Plavix-aspirin combo.
Plavix and Proton Pump Inhibitors
The problem of Plavix gastrointestinal bleeding was further complicated after the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) warned that people taking the blood thinner should avoid heart burn drugs like Prilosec. Drugs like Prilosec, as well as Nexium, Prevacid, Aciphex, and Protonix, are often prescribed to reduce the risk of gastric bleeding from the Plavix-aspirin combo.
In November 2009, the FDA said such drugs, known as Proton Pump Inhibitors, could inhibit the effectiveness of Plavix. According to the FDA, Plavix does not have anti-clotting effects until it is converted or metabolized into its active form with the help of the liver enzyme, CYP2C19. It was already known that people who have reduced functioning of their CYP2C19 liver enzyme are unable to effectively convert Plavix to its active form.
Prilosec blocks the CYP2C19 liver enzyme, thereby reducing the effectiveness of Plavix. According to the FDA, it is unknown how other PPIs may interfere with Plavix. Other drugs that should not be used with Plavix because they may have a similar interaction with CYP2C19 include Nexium (esomeprazole), Tagamet and Tagamet HB (cimetidine), Diflucan (fluconazole), Nizoral (ketoconazole), VFEND (voriconazole), Intelence (etravirine), Felbatol (felbamate), Prozac, Serafem, Symbyax (fluoxetine), Luvox (fluvoxamine) and Ticlid (ticlopidine).
Legal Help for Victims of Plavix Bleeding
If you or a loved one suffered cerebral bleeding, gastrointestinal bleeding, internal hemorrhaging or Thrombotic Thrombocytepenic Purpura (TTP) while taking Plavix, you may have valuable legal rights. To discuss your case with one of our Plavix lawyers, please fill out our online form, or call 1 800 LAW INFO (1-800-529-4636) today.
