Levaquin Blog

Johnson & Johnson (the manufacturer of Levaquin) is trying to prevent the first Levaquin lawsuits from being consolidated into a single trial. Plaintiffs’ attorneys want to have the first three “Bellweather” cases tried together. They claim that these cases are very similar; since the plaintiffs have similar injuries, claims, and situations, it is more efficient for the court to handle them as a single trial.

Attorneys for J&J disagree, arguing that the potential differences in the plaintiffs’ medical histories and their unique injuries suffered may confuse the jury.

There are now hundreds of cases pending against Levaquin in state and federal courts. The first cases to go to trial in products liability cases such as this are often the most important ones for both plaintiffs and defendants – if plaintiffs lose, future plaintiffs will find an emboldened defendent and face an uphill battle. However, if the first plaintiffs prevail, oftentimes the defendants may rethink their strategy and might find settlement to be a viable option. (Thus these first cases are referred to as Bellwether cases.)

The majority of the lawsuits allege that the antibiotic medication caused the plaintiffs tendon ruptures, tendonitis, and other tendon injuries.

In July of 2008, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration mandated the manufacturers of the fluoroquinolone class of antibiotics (including Levaquin, Cipro, Avelox & others) to include a “black box” warning label, which states clearly that there is significant risk of tendon injuries for users of these drugs. Prior to that date, any warnings of such injuries were not clearly displayed (allegedly buried in a long list of potential side effects. Currently, the language is clear:
WARNING
Fluoroquinolones, including LEVAQUIN®, are associated with an increased risk of tendinitis and tendon rupture in all ages. This risk is further increased in older patients usually over 60 years of age, in patients taking corticosteroid drugs, and in patients with kidney, heart or lung transplants [See WARNINGS AND PRECAUTIONS].

Source: http://www.injuryboard.com/printfriendly.aspx?id=274696 (Author: Scott Kappes)

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Here is a brief summary of the warning signs of tendonitis and tendon ruptures after taking Levaquin. If you or someone you know has taken Levaquin and would like to learn more about the possibility of joining a lawsuit against the manufacturers (Ortho-MacNeil and Johnson & Johnson), visit Legaltube or call our sponsor firm, Slater Rosenberger & Schulman, at 1-800-251-6990.

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Here’s a scary post from Vivian at Spine-Health.com.  Post in the comments if you believe Levaquin should be the first line of defense…

 The E.R. doctor prescribed Levaquin 500 mgs for 10 days and Lori-tab for the ache very typical of a kidney infection. I am a 42yo woman who owns a motorcycle, swims, dances with a group and loves to wear beautiful heels. My life has changed since that night in the E.R. July 14 (Tuesday) , I was in my doctor’s office complaining about bad headaches and feeling achy. I asked if this should be a concern since headaches were part of the warning label. The response was to remain on the antibiotic since the benefit far outweighed the side effects. The rest of the week was full of aches, pains, swelling, and a cloudy mental state. By Friday, the 17th of July I was laying in bed after noticing I no longer had ankles and I hurt all over. Thinking maybe this would pass I rested for an hour and my partner came to check on me. My jaw was tight and felt like it was locking down, every part of my body, every joint was hurting including my head. I called my doctor’s office and asked if this was an allergic reaction and should I go to the hospital. The on-call said she was at the E.R. and maybe I should come in to be seen although it would be a long wait time because they were busy. I was seen, they talked about finishing with Cipro and then decided they would give me Bactrim. I asked how long I could expect to feel the effect of the Levaquin, the answer was 3 to 4 days. Since then, I have been in and out of the E.R. with acute and chronic pain. Walking has become almost impossible on some days. All of a sudden I have a back and hip problem. I am getting lumbar epidurals now and have sold the motorcycle. Oh, Dr. XXX said, “Levaquin is a great drug”. This was a E.R. doctor that was angry that I asked if this seemed to be an on-going issue from taking Levaquin. I am desperate to be pain free for even one 24 hour period. A storm of depression and clouds have set in…the thunder is my pain….Now they tell me I have herniated discs in the lumbar area? I have had no trauma?

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Here are some important statistics about Levaquin (more found here):

One of the most disabling adverse reactions of Levaquin is spontaneous rupture of multiple tendons, which may occur during therapy, as well as years after therapy has been discontinued.   Although the onset of symptoms typically occurs within 12 weeks, injury was also described within hours to as long as months after the initiation of treatment, and even after discontinuation. Tendon injury was reported to occur as early as two hours after receipt of the first dose of a fluoroquinolone (ciprofloxacin) to as late as 6 months after treatment had been terminated.  Tendinitis, arthralgia, myalgia as well as severe joint, muscle and tendon pain are found to be the top three adverse reactions reported to the FDA via the Adverse Event Reporting System (AERS) for all fluoroquonolones.

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This is one of the early news reports from when the Black Box warning was first announced. As always, if you notice tendon pains and you are taking fluoroquinolones, please contact your doctor immediately.

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