UNIONDALE, N.Y., May 22, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Mark & Associates, P.C. and The Lanier Law Firm announce the filing of civil lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) and Ortho McNeil, the makers of the potent antibiotic Levaquin, for causing patients to suffer painful tendon ruptures. The lawsuits (Docket Nos. ATL-L-1644-09, ATL-L-1661-09, ATL-L-1710-09) were recently filed in the Superior Court of New Jersey in Atlantic County on behalf of three plaintiffs from around the United States.
The lawsuits allege that Johnson & Johnson and Ortho-McNeil promoted Levaquin as a safe and effective treatment for bacterial infections of the lungs, sinus, skin, and urinary tract. Also alleged is that the companies knew for years that Levaquin, one of several antibiotics in a class of drugs known as fluoroquinolones, had caused severe tendon ruptures and tendonitis at higher rates than other antibiotics. For more information on these lawsuits and Levaquin side effects, please visit http://www.levaquintendonrupture.com or http://www.youhaverights.com/dangerous-drugs/levaquin.
"Despite such pronouncements ... both early product label warnings as well as post-label epidemiological studies provide clear evidence that there is a significant relationship between fluoroquinolone use, tendonitis and tendon rupture, especially the Achilles tendon," the lawsuits state.
Plaintiff Profiles
* Plaintiff 1 is an Indiana woman who was prescribed Levaquin in April 2008. She had no history of tendonitis or tendon ruptures. After taking Levaquin for a period of time, she suffered a painful tendon rupture in her right ankle. * Plaintiff 2 is a Massachusetts man who was prescribed Levaquin in August 2006. Despite having no history of tendon ruptures or tendonitis, he sustained a devastating rupture of the left Achilles tendon after taking Levaquin. * Plaintiff 3 is a man from New Jersey who was prescribed Levaquin in December 2007. He had no medical history of tendonitis or tendon ruptures; but after taking Levaquin, he suffered a left elbow distal bicep tendon rupture.
FDA Warns of Levaquin Dangers
In July 2008, the Food and Drug Administration ordered the makers of Levaquin and other fluoroquinolones to place prominent "Black Box" warnings on the drugs' packaging to alert users of the increased risk of tendonitis and tendon ruptures. A "Black Box" warning is the strongest such notification the FDA can order for drug packaging.
The FDA warning came after the agency received at least 336 reports of tendon ruptures in patients treated with all fluoroquinolones, including Levaquin, from November 1997 to March 2007.
Attorneys Comment on Levaquin Lawsuits
Jason Mark, founder of Mark & Associates, P.C., said Levaquin has more serious side effects than other generation antibiotics and is the most dangerous of all fluoroquinolone antibiotics.
"We are troubled by the frequency of adverse event reports associated with Levaquin use when it clearly appears there were safer alternative antibiotics available to treat underlying bacterial infections," Mark said.
Mark Lanier, founder of The Lanier Law Firm and lead trial counsel in the lawsuits, commented as follows: "The widespread use of Levaquin, to treat illnesses that could have been treated by safer antibiotics, injured thousands of patients and cost the health care system millions of dollars. A typical Levaquin prescription costs just over $100.00, but generic antibiotics, which could just as effectively treated many of the same conditions, cost significantly less and have better safety profiles. Johnson & Johnson and Ortho-McNeil have succeeded in convincing physicians to prescribe a more dangerous drug which, in turn, makes these drug companies more money."
What is Levaquin?
Levaquin is the brand name for the antibiotic drug levofloxacin. It is marketed in the United States by Ortho-McNeil, a division of Johnson & Johnson. Levaquin is a member of the fluoroquinolone class of antibacterial medications. The drug was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 1997 and since then has been blamed for hundreds of tendon ruptures and cases of tendonitis, even in patients who took the drug for short periods of time at the recommended doses.
About Mark & Associates, P.C.
Mark & Associates, P.C. has offices in Boston, Massachusetts and Long Island, New York. The firm is continuing to evaluate cases involving Levaquin related injuries. Mark & Associates aggressively represents victims of securities and investment fraud, insurance bad faith, defective products, dangerous pharmaceuticals and medical devices and serious accidents. More information on Mark & Associates, P.C. is available at www.youhaverights.com.
About The Lanier Law Firm
With offices in Los Angeles, Palo Alto, Houston and New York, The Lanier Law Firm is committed to addressing client concerns with effective and innovative solutions in courtrooms across the country. The firm is composed of outstanding trial attorneys with decades of experience handling cases involving personal injury, pharmaceutical liability, asbestos exposure, intellectual property, business litigation, product liability, toxic exposure and maritime law.