Baycol
Recall Resource
Over
the last several years, the drug Baycol, manufactured by Bayer
AG, has been linked to over 50 deaths.
One
August 8th, 2001, it was taken off the market to prevent more
fatal reactions from patients. Baycol is a statin that helps to
lower cholesterol. While many statins have been linked to a potentially
dangerous condition called Rhabdomyolysis, only Baycol has resulted
in death.
The Baycol Recall Resource website
provides the most comprehensive information on the Baycol recall,
including how Baycol came to be recalled, drug information on
Baycol and associated drugs, frequently asked questions, additional
online resources, and contact information to find out about your
legal rights regarding harmful Baycol reactions.
Breaking
News!! SEPTEMBER
2003
Baycol
class action lawsuit denied but Bayer still faces large
legal battles.
A
U.S. federal court on September 17, 2003 denied certification
of a Baycol class action lawsuit that had been filed against
Bayer AG. In 2001, Baycol cholesterol drug was pulled
off the market because of deadly Baycol side effects reported,
including rhabdomyolysis, a disease causing muscle damage,
kidney failure, and other injuries. Read
Full Article..
Breaking
News!! JUNE
2003
More
Baycol cases settled.
Bayer
claims the company no longer faces individual Baycol lawsuits
following even more out of court settlements and an individual
Baycol lawsuit withdrawal. The next Baycol lawsuit cases
are scheduled to occur in July. By the start of May 2003,
Bayer had already paid $240 million to settle 785 Baycol
lawsuits.
Breaking
News!! APRIL 2003
Baycol maker, Bayer AG announced that the number of out
of court settlements for its recalled drug was on the
rise.
Bayer
has already settled around 500 Baycol cases out of court
at $150.1 million. The company said it would update the
Baycol settlement and Baycol lawsuit figures later in
April 2003. Bayer is still facing around 8,400 Baycol
cases. There have been over 100 deaths linked to the use
of Baycol, many of the Baycol deaths attributed to a rare
condition called rhabdomyolysis.
Click
here for more recent Baycol News...
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The Danger Over Baycol
The real concern
for patients is the development of the condition known as Rhabdomyolysis.
This is a dangerous, and potentially fatal, condition where muscle
cells enter the bloodstream and cause acute pain, often in the
lower back and legs. In severe cases, the patient can experience
kidney failure and die. This is what happened to 31 patients who
were taking Baycol and experienced fatal outcomes. Symptoms of
Rhabdomyolysis include muscle pain, weakness, and tenderness;
fever; dark urine; nausea and vomiting.Fatalities
from taking Baycol seemed to be focused on three groups, including:
-
elderly patients
- anyone
who takes high dosages of Baycol
-
individuals who take Baycol in combination with gemfibrozil.
Of the 31 deaths
that occurred in the U.S., 12 of them involved patients taking both
Baycol and gemfibrozil.Concerns
over the health risks posed by Baycol had been brewing for many
months as reports of fatalities trickled in. The first active response
came from British regulators who banned high dosages of Baycol that
seemed to be involved in those cases where fatalitites occurred.The
FDA finally asked Bayer to take the drug off the market in the United
States after the fatalities occurred and at the urging of the consumer
advocacy group Public Citizen, which is led by Ralph Nader. Public
Citizen is urging the FDA to place stronger warning labels on all
statins, as well as urging the manufacturers to provide consumers
with special brochures that come with every statin and explain the
associated risks.
News
Links
April
2003: Another Baycol lawsuit settled, according to Bayer
March
2003: Internal Bayer Baycol Documents Revealed at First Baycol
Lawsuit Trial
February
2003: Lawyer for a plaintiff in Germany are seeking $500 million
in punitive damages for recalled cholesterol drug Baycol, marketed
as Libobay outside of the U.S.
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