A Risperdal lawsuit was filed against Janssen Pharmaceuticals by a young man who alleges he developed gynecomastia after using the prescription antipsychotic drug Risperdal.

Andrew Wasserman says he was 20 when he was first prescribed Risperdal and continued to take it periodically for the next few years. During this time, Wasserman, in his Risperdal lawsuit, “indicates that he developed enlarged breasts that caused him to suffer severe psychological damage, as well as pain and physical injuries.” The Risperdal lawsuit alleges that his development of gynecomastia, the enlargement of male breasts, was directly caused by his use of Janssen Pharmaceutical’s drug.

In 2011, at age 24, Wasserman reportedly underwent a double mastectomy to remove the enlarged breast tissue. The Risperdal breast tissue growth lawsuit was filed in June.

Wasserman is not the only young man pursuing legal action against Johnson & Johnson’s pharmaceutical subsidiary Janssen. Several hundred male Risperdal consumers are filing gynecomastia lawsuits against Janssen, alleging that the subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, “promoted Risperdal illegally, for uses not approved by the FDA, such as for major depressive disorder and post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).” Wasserman and other Risperdal side effects victims have also alleged that Janssen and J&J actively covered up the possible risks of gynecomastia from their consumers.

What is Gynecomastia?

Gynecomastia is the unnatural enlargement of male breasts in adolescent males. It can be caused by genetic or environmental factors. For example, when a young man has an unusually low amount of testosterone in his system, he may develop symptoms of gynecomastia. However, in the case of Risperdal users, it has been alleged that the high rate of adolescent males developing gynecomastia directly resulted only from their use of the antipsychotic drug.

Because Risperdal is designed to block dopamine in order to manage schizophrenia and other mental disorders, an individual’s pituitary gland may release prolactin in response and thus stimulate milk production and eventually lead to gynecomastia.

Although gynecomastia is physically benign, it can be a great source of psychological trauma and stress for young men and may aggravate body image and body acceptance issues.

Some symptoms of gynecomastia include:

• Nipple discharge
• Tenderness in the breast area
• Pain in breast tissue
• Swelling of breast tissue and nipples