More Than 100 Yaz/Yasmin Injury Lawsuits Filed, Thousands More to Come?

At least 129 lawsuits have been filed against the makers of the popular birth-control pills Yaz and Yasmin by women across the United States who say they suffered heart attacks, blood clots, gallbladder disease, and other serious injuries after taking the drugs.

The latest lawsuit against Bayer was filed this week by Susan Galinis, a 39-year-old California woman who says she suffered a stroke after taking Yaz for just one month. Attorneys for Galinis say there could be thousands more similar lawsuits brought by and on behalf of women who were injured or killed by Yaz and Yasmin in the future. The roughly 100 suits already filed may be just “the tip of the iceberg.”

Yaz and Yasmin are the brand names for two contraceptives that use the same type of hormone, called drospirenone. The hormone has been associated with increased levels of potassium in the body and a potentially fatal condition called hyperkalemia. Yaz contains a lower dose of the estrogen and progestin components than Yasmin.

“There are no benefits to this drug, and there are greater risks,” said attorney Michael Danko, who represents Galinis in her lawsuit against Bayer. “The reason they’re using a synthetic hormone is because they can patent it.”

Dozens of Deaths, Injuries Linked to Yaz and Yasmin

Between 2004 and 2008, there were at least 50 deaths linked to Yaz and Yasmin, according to a recent scientific study.

Yaz and Yasmin are most often used to prevent pregnancy, but they also are approved for treating premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD) and moderate to severe acne. Bayer was cited in 2008 by the Food and Drug Administration for a series of television ads that overstated the approved uses of Yaz and Yasmin while failing to adequately address the risks of the drugs. The company was forced to produce and air new ads clarifying the approved uses and dispelling the inaccurate information contained in the earlier ads.

Yaz and Yasmin have become blockbusters for Bayer, earning total sales in 2008 of an estimated $1.8 billion.

Injured Woman Accuses Bayer of Misleading Users

Galinis was prescribed Yaz for treating premenstrual cramping and suffered a debilitating stroke in June 2008, according to her complaint filed in a San Francisco federal court.

Her lawsuit accuses Bayer of misleading users of Yaz and Yasmin into believing that the drugs were safe by not addressing the risks associated with the products and overstating their approved uses.

State and federal claims involving alleged Yaz and Yasmin injuries recently were consolidated in a federal court in the Southern District of Illinois in a multidistrict litigation. A single judge will rule on pre-trial motions and matters including discovery and attempt to resolve the cases before trial. If the cases cannot be disposed of before trial, they will be returned to the courts where they were originally filed for trials.

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