Lawyers
Accutane user Jason Peipert had initially sued his doctor, Dr. Daniel Goran, for medical malpractice and settled recently for an undisclosed amount. Peipert, like other plaintiffs with similar complaints, was prescribed Accutane in the 1990s and claimed that he developed inflammatory bowel disease as a result. The condition led to Peipert’s several surgeries, and he suffered great pain through the initial diagnosis and subsequent treatment. In his lawsuit, he contended that it was the use of Accutane that lead to his emotional and physical suffering.
Accutane was first marketed in the 1990s as a treatment for severe acne cases, but has been proven to cause traumatic and chronic ailments as a side effect of the drug’s use. Patients have reported abdominal afflictions, including ulcerative colitis, gastrointestinal disorders, inflammatory bowel diseases and other ailments of the abdomen and gastrointestinal tracts.
In total, six lawsuits have been settled for a combined $56 million against Hoffman-La Roche. Many of the doctors have been sued by their patients in addition to the suit against Accutane’s manufacturer. However, there are hundreds of cases of Accutane users suffering from abdominal problems that have yet to make their way through the courts.
Roche Laboratories, the subsidiary of Hoffman-La Roche – the company that actually produces the drug – pulled its total inventory from the market in June 2009. Nevertheless, the drug company continues to manufacture the drug under the names Amnesteem, Claravis and Sotr. It is no longer available or sold in the U.S.
Earlier this year, another Accutane case was settled when Andy McCarrell was awarded $25.16 million by a jury for pain and suffering. His story closely mirrors Piepert’s. He battled the onset of ulcerative colitis within one year of his last dose of Accutane. His condition led to extreme complications and he finally had to have his colon removed.
All six plaintiffs against the makers of Accutane have won their cases and have been awarded $56 million dollars in compensation. In each of the cases, juries made the determination that it was the fault of the manufacturer for not properly warning doctors about the side effects of Accutane. Only one of the cases has been overturned on appeal.
Hoffman-La Roche was aware of the dangers, especially to women of childbearing age. It was disclosed that the use of Accutane could cause serious birth defects. Even women who had taken preventative birth measures – such as tubal ligation – were advised to take birth control pills because the danger was so great.
Accutane is an acne-fighting medication and is a form of Vitamin A. Vitamin A is used to reduce the amount of oils secreted by oil glands in the skin as well as speeding the process of skin renewal dramatically. It was to be used only when all other acne preparations and medications had been exhausted.