If you have used Ortho Evra and have suffered from blood clots or a stroke you may be entitled to compensation.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced on November 11, 2005 that the Ortho Evra contraceptive patch exposes millions of women who use the patch to levels of estrogen far higher than most daily birth control pills, putting them at higher risk for blood clots than previously disclosed. The FDA also approved updated labeling for the Ortho Evra contraceptive patch to warn healthcare providers and patients about the increased risk.

If you or a loved one have suffered a stroke, blood clots, required hospitalization, or suffered other serious side effects while using the Ortho Evra patch, please contact our attorneys today. Our firm's skills, credentials and resources have helped our clients get compensation from the manufacturers and suppliers of unsafe drugs and products.

The warning from Johnson and Johnson subsidiary Ortho McNeil, makers of Ortho Evra patch, states that the patch exposes women to 60 percent more estrogen than daily birth control pills, which contain 35 micrograms. Ortho Evra is the first and only skin patch approved for birth control, and more than 4 million women have used the patch since it came on the market three years ago. The patch releases ethinyl estradiol, and estrogen hormone, and norelgestromin, a progestin hormone, through the skin into the bloodstream. It only needs to be changed once a week.

The Associated Press in July reported that, according to FDA records it obtained through a Freedom of Information Act, women using Ortho Evra in 2004 were three times as likely as women using birth control pills to die or develop nonfatal blood clots. The Associated Press learned that of the 23 cases in which death was the outcome, doctors reviewing the cases found 17 that appeared to be blood-clot-related, including 12 in 2004.

Since the FDA estimates that it receives reports of only between 1 percent and 10 percent of the serious adverse drug reactions that actually occur, the death rate for Ortho Evra may be significantly higher.

The Ortho-Evra patch, which is available by prescription only, has not yet been pulled off the market. The drug maker says it is launching its own study with input from the FDA to assess the dangers of using the patch. Women who may be using Ortho Evra should contact their physician if any of the following warning signals develop:

• Sharp chest pain, coughing of blood, or sudden shortness of breath (indicating a possible clot in the lung)

• Pain in the calf (indicating a possible clot in the leg)

• Crushing chest pain or tightness in the chest (indicating a possible heart attack)

• Sudden severe headache or vomiting, dizziness or fainting, disturbances of vision or speech, weakness, or numbness in an arm or leg (indicating a possible stroke)

• Sudden partial or complete loss of vision (indicating a possible clot in the eye)

• Breast lumps (indicating possible breast cancer or fibrocystic disease of the breast; ask your doctor or health care professional to show you how to examine your breasts)

• Severe pain or tenderness in the stomach area (indicating a possibly ruptured liver tumor)

• Severe problems with sleeping, weakness, lack of energy, fatigue, or change in mood (possibly indicating severe depression)

• Jaundice or a yellowing of the skin or eyeballs accompanied frequently by fever, fatigue, loss of appetite, dark colored urine, or light colored bowel movements (indicating possible liver problems)

Please consult your physician before discontinuing any medication.

We believe that drug companies who place profit above people must be held accountable for their negligence and the damage they cause to innocent victim’s lives.

If you have suffered harmful effects from the Ortho Evra patch such as blood clots or stroke, you may be entitled to file a legal claim against the drugs maker for negligence in product labeling and marketing. Brown & Crouppen has represented many victims of defective drugs, and as our client, you will be backed by a team of legal professionals, medical experts and investigators who are committed to ensuring that your rights are protected.

Brown & Crouppen can help you make informed decisions about your legal rights, so please call Brown & Crouppen at Toll Free: 866-991-4700 for your free legal consultation or save time with our online Contact Form.

ORTHO EVRA CONTRACEPTIVE PATCH NEWS & LAWYER UPDATES

Some Doctors Stop Prescribing Ortho Evra Birth Control Patch After FDA Warning, Wall Street Journal Reports
November 22, 2005
Some doctors are no longer writing prescriptions for Johnson & Johnson's Ortho Evra contraceptive patch after FDA issued a warning earlier this month regarding possible health risks for women using the patch, the Wall Street Journal reports (Chaker, Wall Street Journal, 11/22).

FDA Warns Ortho Evra Contraceptive Patch Users
CBS News - November 11, 2005
... The Food and Drug Administration has issued a public warning on Ortho Evra Contraceptive Patch blood clot risks

FDA says patch has blood clot risk
CNN - November 11, 2005
... The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday warned millions of women who use the Ortho Evra contraceptive patch that they are being exposed to about 60 percent more estrogen than with a typical birth control pill, which could put them at higher risk for blood clots.

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