Couple Files Lawsuit for Daughter’s Stroke Damage After Using Yaz
Couple Files Lawsuit for Daughter’s Stroke Damage After Using Yaz
The parents of a young woman who suffered a stroke after taking Yaz® birth control have filed a lawsuit on her behalf for her serious physical injuries. The case has been joined with other claims in the Yaz® multidistrict litigation currently seeking damages for hundreds of women who were injured while taking the birth control drug.
The lawsuit seeks $75,000 for the daughter’s injuries, including loss of muscle control, loss of vision, and emotional pain and distress.
Yaz Causes Serious Physical Injuries in Some Patients
According to the lawsuit filed by the parents, their daughter was prescribed Yaz® in July of 2012. However, her pharmacist filled the prescription with Givani®, a generic equivalent. At that time, the victim noticed no dangerous side effects from her use of the drug.
However, in August, the pharmacy began given her name-brand Yaz® and in October she developed a blood clot in her leg. This type of clot is known as a deep vein thrombosis or DVT. In the victim’s case, the DVT led to a stroke.
While not everyone who takes Yaz® will develop DVTs or have strokes, recent studies suggest that women who use oral contraceptives containing the progestin drug drospirenone, the active ingredient in Yaz®, may develop more blood clots and be at higher risk of both strokes and heart attacks as well as other serious side effects. Most frightening of all, these increased risks manifest themselves quickly, with many patients suffering side effects in as little as six months after beginning the use of the drug.
One 2012 study in the medical journal Contraception found that women who used drospirenone-containing birth control pills might be at higher risk for blood clots than those who used traditional combined hormone pills. A 2012 New England Journal of Medicine study found that the risk for women using Yaz® was higher for deadly heart attacks and strokes as well as blood clots.
In April of 2012, the Food and Drug Administration issued a directive to the makers of the drug that future packaging must include stronger warnings about the potential dangers of Yaz.
Yaz® Lawsuits Seek Damages
More than 12,000 women who have used Yaz® birth control have filed lawsuits for problems such as strokes, pulmonary thromboses, DVTs, heart attacks and gallbladder disease. Bayer, the manufacturer of Yaz®, is in negotiations to settle these cases and has already reached an agreement in about 3,500 cases.
However, more women are coming forward to file claims regarding Yaz® injuries so it is very likely that this class action will continue for some time.
If you have been the victim of injuries caused by Yaz®, it is important to talk to an attorney as soon as possible about filing your claim. If you are not sure if your injuries were caused by birth control, talk to a personal injury attorney who can review your medical records and advise you of your rights in this matter.
