Patients Sue for Injuries Caused by Oversized Morphine Pills
Two drug companies are being sued by former patients for allegedly manufacturing oversized tablets that are suspected of containing potentially deadly overdoses of morphine.
The suits were filed in St. Clair County (Illinois) Circuit Court on behalf of Lester Skinner, Stephanie Fox, and Walter Mueller, who accuse drug makers KV Pharmaceuticals and its subsidiary Ethex Corp. of making the defectively dangerous pills.
Skinner’s wife, Carolyn, died due to an accidental overdose of an extended-release form of morphine sulfate made by the companies. Fox and Mueller allege they took the companies’ morphine tablets in October and November 2008 and suffered severe abdominal pain, vomiting, nausea, headaches, and other serious complications.
Recall Came Too Late, Suit Alleges
KV Pharmaceuticals and Ethex Corp. announced a recall of their morphine pills in November 2008 after it was discovered that the pills were double-sized and might contain dangerous double-doses of morphine. The plaintiffs say they took the defective pills before the recall was announced.
They allege the drug companies knew about the oversized morphine pills and the potential for death and injury before the recall was announced, but failed to take action. The Food and Drug Administration previously had issued at least eight warnings to KV Pharmaceuticals about violations of the FDA’s policies for drug manufacturing involving the morphine products later found to be oversized, according to the plaintiffs’ suit.
“Despite such knowledge, however, Defendants, and each of them, for the purpose of enhancing their profits, knowingly and deliberately failed to warn the public, including Plaintiffs, of the extreme risk of physical injury occasioned by said defect and intentionally proceed with dissemination of the drugs with knowledge that consumers, like Plaintiffs and Plaintiffs’ Decedent, would be exposed to serious danger when they ingested the defective drug,” the suit states, according to a report in the Madison-St. Clair Record.
The plaintiffs are seeking damages against the drug companies under products liability, negligent design, negligent failure to warn, common law fraud, negligent misrepresentation, breach of express warranty, and breach of implied warranties, according to the lawsuit.
Their suit asks for more than $800,000 in compensatory damages plus unspecified compensation and punitive damages to punish the defendants for their negligent actions.
Other ETHEX Corp. Pill Problems
This was not the first time that KV Pharmaceuticals or its affiliated company was in trouble for making oversized pills. Also in November 2008, ETHEX Corp. recalled nine lots of generic heart and low-blood pressured drugs that had been shipped before May 22, 2008 due to concerns about the safety of the drugs.
The oversized tablets of the drugs Propafenone HCl, Isosorbide Mononitrate, Morphine sulfate, and Dextroamphetamine sulfate were recalled after it was learned they might contain potentially life-threatening doses of active ingredients, officials said.
Digitek Digoxin Pill Recall
Other drug companies have also run into similar problems with oversized pills. In April 2008, a nationwide recall was ordered for the heart-failure medication Digitek (digoxin) after an unknown number of pills thought to contain twice the dose of the drug’s active ingredient were given to patients.
About a dozen reports of deaths, illness, and injuries associated with the drug were reported after the suspected double-doses were discovered.
Digitek is used to treat heart failure and abnormal heart rhythm in both humans and animals. An overdose of the drug can result in vomiting, nausea, cardiac instability, low blood pressure, dizziness, and even death. Also, double dosages of digoxin can result in toxicity in patients with renal failure.
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