Texas Eliquis Class Action Lawyer

The blood-thinning drug Eliquis has been linked to severe, uncontrollable bleeding. Unfortunately, it was marketed as safe when there was no way to reverse its effects in an emergency.

Eliquis and Bleeding

Eliquis (apixaban) is a prescription medication that is approved to prevent strokes in people with atrial fibrillation, which is a type of irregular heart rhythm that can cause blood clots. Eliquis reduces the risk of blood clots by changing a patient’s blood chemistry. Compared to warfarin, the advantage of Eliquis is that patients do not need to undergo routine blood-tests or stick to a diet.

No Effective Reversal Agent

However, there is a major disadvantage. While the blood-thinning effects of warfarin can be easily reversed with a dose of Vitamin K, there was no antidote to Eliquis when it was approved in 2012. Even so, drug-makers marketed Eliquis as superior to warfarin because it has “less major bleeding.”

This does not explain what happens to patients who do start bleeding — and many do. Bleeding is the most common serious side effect of Eliquis. If a doctor can’t de-activate Eliquis in an emergency, it is possible that a patient will bleed uncontrollably. This increases the risk of complications like brain damage and death.

Eliquis Lawsuits

A number of lawsuits have already been filed by people who were injured by bleeding after taking Eliquis. However, these cases are not part of a class action. Instead, they are individual lawsuits that have been filed in state and federal court. One of the first lawsuits was filed in July 2015 by the widow of a man who died from uncontrollable gastrointestinal bleeding. Thousands of lawsuits have recently been filed by people who were injured by Pradaxa and Xarelto.

Eliquis MDL

A large number of Eliquis lawsuits have been filed, but not as part of a class action. Instead, Eliquis lawsuits nationwide have been centralized into one federal court in New York, under Judge Denise L. Cote, in Multi-District Litigation (MDL No. 2754). All of the lawsuits involve people who were injured or died from uncontrollable bleeding — In re: Eliquis (Apixaban) Products Liability Litigation.

Bleeding Risks Linked to Eliquis

• Internal bleeding
• Bleeding in the brain
• Cerebral hemorrhage
• Gastrointestina
• l bleeding
• Organ damage
• Stroke
• Death