Law Library Articles
Top 10 Unsafe Drugs Law Articles in the LegalMatch Law Library
Even though Billy Joel probably only chose the phrase "Children of Thalidomide" in order to rhyme with "The River Kwai" in his famous song "We Didn’t Start the Fire," in only three words he summed up a decade’s worth of history involving drug safety.
Throughout American history, the US government has instituted legislation to ensure the purity of our drugs and food. It has been a continuing evolution as seen by the thalidomide scandal in the early 1960s and the Bendectin Supreme Court case in the early 1990s. Even though the FDA must approve every drug before it is allowed on the market, sometimes a few drugs slip through and cause severe adverse reactions. As a primer for people dealing with unsafe drugs, the LegalMatch Law Library has compiled a list of the Top 10 Articles on Unsafe Drugs Law.
1. Unsafe Drugs
There are many FDA approved drugs that have caused serious adverse side effects. These drugs are often the target of class action lawsuits that seek to compensate those who have been injured or killed by these medicines.
2. Prescription Drugs: Medical Warning
US law requires that there be medical warnings for prescription drugs. Drug companies are obligated to provide warnings of possible side effects that might occur.
3. Over the Counter Drugs
Sometimes it is not the drug itself that causes the injury, but because a pharmacist gave the wrong advice. If the pharmacist acted carelessly when giving advice, he might be liable for any injury that occurs.
4. Risperdal
Risperdal is a common antipsychotic drug that has been found to have serious adverse side effects and has been found to increase the risk of stroke in older patients.
5. Hydrocut
Hydrocut is a weight loss supplement that contains ephedra, a dangerous chemical that can cause rapid heart palpitations that might lead to death.
6. Demerol
Demerol is a commonly prescribed pain reliever and has shown to possibly be addictive and habit forming.
7. Lexapro
Lexapro is used to treat depression, but it has been circumstantially linked with causing an increase in suicidal thoughts for some people.
8. Thalidomide
First marketed in the early 1960s as an anti-nausea drug for pregnant women, it caused devastatingly severe birth defects in children born to mothers who took it during their pregnancy.
9. Domperidone
Domperidone is used to increase the volume of breast milk in new mothers. It has not been approved by the FDA and has been linked to heart problems.
10. Lamisil
Lamisil is often used to treat fungal infections, but it has been linked to both congestive heart failure and liver failure.
