Jessica Tyner  |  February 21, 2014

Category: Legal News

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Lipitor diabetesLipitor is a drug designed to lower bad cholesterol, but has also been linked to causing irreversible type-2 diabetes, especially in women over 50. On Jan. 22, 2014, plaintiff Sandra Strattan joined thousands of other women who have filed a Lipitor lawsuit, alleging that she was diagnosed with type-2 diabetes after taking Lipitor, although she previously wasn’t at a high risk for the disease.

“Plaintiff’s injuries, like those striking thousands of similarly situated victims across the country, were avoidable. Lipitor has been implicated in a national epidemic of type-2 diabetes in women taking Lipitor,” her Lipitor lawsuit says.

Pfizer Downplays Lipitor Diabetes Risk

“In August of 2011, the FDA requested that Pfizer make labeling changes for Lipitor based upon the FDA’s comprehensive review, including clinical trial data. The label change required Defendant to warn of the changes in blood sugar levels when taking Lipitor. Defective design, inadequate warnings, and inadequate instructions led to serious patient complications, including type 2 diabetes, as happened to Plaintiff,” Strattan’s Lipitor lawsuit states.

Furthermore, Strattan alleges that the makers of Lipitor, Pfizer, knew about the risks but chose to keep them concealed.

“Even though Defendant knew of the risks for several years, medical providers were unaware that the use of Lipitor caused type 2 diabetes in female patients. As a result, thousands of women taking Lipitor were unaware that the drug was affecting their blood sugar levels. Even when Defendant finally began disclosing some of this information, it refused to protect patients. For example, when Defendant finally changed its label in February of 2012, the warning it issued was extremely vague and in no direct terms did it warn that consumption of Lipitor could lead to the development of type 2 diabetes,” the lawsuit continues.

With so many cholesterol drugs on the market, Strattan says that if she’d known about the Lipitor side effects, she could have either taken another medication or kept a close eye on her glucose levels.

Doctor Prescribed Lipitor Unaware of Diabetes Risk

Lipitor has been on the market for several years.“In 2004, Plaintiff, Sandra Strattan, was a 57 year-old woman when she consulted with her nurse practitioner, Jacqueline G. Snelson, CRNP of Friendsville, Maryland for general medical care. Ms. Snelson prescribed Lipitor to Ms. Strattan and instructed her to use it as directed beginning in February of 2004,” the Lipitor lawsuit states.

Strattan took Lipitor for years, trusting that it was reasonably safe.

“Eight years after she began treatment with Lipitor, Ms. Strattan was diagnosed with type-2 diabetes in or about February of 2012. As a result, for the rest of her life, Ms. Strattan must undergo regular testing of her blood glucose levels, adhere to a restrictive diabetic diet, maintain an exercise regimen, and take medication to control her diabetes. As a consequence of her diabetes, Ms. Strattan developed a tingling sensation in her feet. Ms. Strattan is now also at a markedly increased risk of heart disease, neuropathy, and blindness as a result of her diabetes.”

While Pfizer made label changes in 2012, that was well after Strattan’s diagnosis and prescription of Lipitor. However, she claims that even if she had started Lipitor after the label changes, it wouldn’t have been enough.

“Despite the February 2012 label change, that warns in the most obtuse terms of a potential elevation of blood sugar, Lipitor’s label continues to fail to warn consumers or their physicians directly of the serious risk of developing type-2 diabetes per se. At all times material hereto, Defendant knew or should have known that the risks of Lipitor included the severe and life-threatening complications of type-2 diabetes.” She notes that the possibility of developing diabetes was never mentioned on any of the labels or packaging. “Despite its knowledge of data indicating that Lipitor use is causally related to the development of type 2 diabetes and/or blood glucose levels diagnostic for type 2 diabetes, Pfizer promoted and marketed Lipitor as safe and effective for persons such as Ms. Strattan throughout the United States.”

Big Lifestyle Changes

Although diabetes can be manageable, it doesn’t come without serious risks and changes to a person’s lifestyle.

“As alleged herein, as a direct and proximate result of Defendant’s negligent conduct, and the unreasonably dangerous and defective characteristics of the drug Lipitor, Ms. Stratton suffered severe and permanent physical and emotional injuries, including, but not limited to, type-2 diabetes. Plaintiff has incurred losses and damages including pain and suffering, emotional distress, loss of enjoyment of life; and has suffered economic loss, including incurring significant expenses for medical care and treatment.”

While Strattan hasn’t joined a Lipitor class action lawsuit yet, her case may qualify to be transferred in the future. Joining a Lipitor multi-district litigation may help victims get faster resolutions and compensation without foregoing an individual trial by jury. Lipitor MDLs have been growing in class member sizes as thousands of people join.

She’s suing for negligence, strict tort liability, failure to warn, breach of warranty, negligent misrepresentation, fraud and punitive damages.

The case is Sandra Strattan v. Pfizer Inc., Case No.: 1:14-cv-00014-IMK, in the United States District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia.

In general, Lipitor lawsuits are filed individually by each plaintiff and are not class actions.

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Join a Free Lipitor Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

If you’re a woman who was diagnosed with type-2 diabetes while taking Lipitor, or were diagnosed with diabetes within 90 days or less of your last dose of Lipitor, you may be eligible for compensation. See if you qualify by filling out the short form below.

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