Serious Side Effects from Accutane Lead to Lawsuits

More than 13 million U.S. citizens used acne treatment medication Accutane before its 2009 recall. Frequently, users experienced Accutane side effects such as headache, nosebleed, and dry lips, among other similar symptoms. However Accutane did provoke much more serious side effects in some users, such as ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease. Currently there are more than 1,000 Accutane lawsuits making their way through the U.S. court system, and if you are a former Accutane consumer negatively affected by the drug’s side effects, it’s not too late to file a lawsuit of your own.

Accutane’s Life-Altering Side Effects

It was known for years that isotretinoin, the active compound in Accutane, causes grave birth defects in babies if consumed by a pregnant patient. In the last decade it has also been established that Accutane brings about serious gastrointestinal side effects as well. The American Journal of Gastroenterology published a study in March 2010 that proved that Accutane users had a 4 times greater chance of coming down with ulcerative colitis than non-users. The findings of this study were corroborated by several other studies. Ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease are both critical inflammatory bowel conditions. Ulcerative colitis is permanent in some cases, and can also lead to removal of the colon.

Accutane Retired, but Not Recalled

Actually, Accutane was never officially recalled by the FDA. The manufacturer of Accutane, Swiss-based company Roche, volunteered to withdraw Accutane from the market in the United States and 11 additional countries in June 2009. They cited economic concerns as the motivation for this decision, which were likely due to pressure from the many generic forms of isotretinoin as well as the considerable resources Roche was pouring into the Accutane lawsuits. Some theorize that Roche pulled their medication in order to avoid an actual recall ordered by the FDA. But in August 2010, about one year after Roche’s voluntary recall, the FDA published a statement that it had no intention of recalling the generic forms of Accutane in the near future. Today isotretinoin is widely available and can be acquired under the brand names Claravis, Sotret, and Amnesteem.

Accutane Lawsuits and Settlements

Thus far, more than 1,000 Accutane lawsuits are underway in the United States. As of August 2010 only six of these had received a trial and a verdict, and in all six cases it was decided in favor of the plaintiff. As of press time, it was reported that Roche has paid more than $60 million in total compensation to victims. In a particularly important decision, Roche was ordered to pay $25 million to a sole plaintiff in Alabama whose colon had had to be removed as a direct result of Accutane side effects. There are many other individuals with equally legitimate claims against Roche, and it is highly likely that the payouts and settlements will total millions more.