ST. LOUIS — A consumer is suing the makers of prescription drug Xarelto, citing alleged significant injuries due to ingestion of the product.
Richard Raffel filed a complaint Aug. 4 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri Eastern Division against Janssen Research & Development LLC, formerly known as Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical Research and Development LLC; Janssen Ortho LLC, et al., alleging strict product liability and other counts.
This is a potential tag-along action that should be transferred to the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana for inclusion in In re Xarelto (Rivarixaban) Products Liability Litigation.
According to the complaint, the plaintiff alleges that on Sept. 19, 2015, he was sought treatment at St. Anthony’s Medical Center's emergency room for excruciating left inner groin pain. He was advised to stop taking Xarelto to halt the excessive bleeding that resulted in a left iliopsoas hematoma and hemorrhage in the right gluteal musculature, which caused or contributed to the pain. He alleges the defendants' Xarelto is defectively designed, inadequately tested, dangerous to human health and lacked proper warnings.
The plaintiff claims Xarelto was advertised as a safe and effective treatment to reduce the risk of stroke and systemic embolism in patients with nonvulvar atrial fibrillation, but research allegedly shows the product highlights the increased risk of gastrointestinal bleeding and bleeding that required transfusion, among other serious concerns.
William Foster, spokesman for Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc., said in a statement that “[a]ll anticoagulants, or blood thinners, carry the risk of bleeding, and the prescribing information for Xarelto has always warned of these risks."
The plaintiff requests a trial by jury and seeks an award for compensatory and economic damage, pre- and post-judgment interest, statutory damages, costs, and any other relief the court deems proper. He is represented by Thomas K. Neill of Gray, Ritter & Graham PC in St. Louis.
U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri Eastern Division case number 4:17-cv-02210-JMB