Lawsuit Update Center
A Chantix murder/suicide lawsuit has been filed in Pennsylvania alleging that Chantix caused a man to kill his wife and then himself. The victims’ families claim there was not an adequate warning that Chantix could cause this extreme level of aggressive behavior. Obviously, the claim is that Chantix was a causal factor in the murder-suicide.
According to Chantix lawsuits that have been filed around the country, the FDA has received plenty of reports about Chantix side effects:
Accidents: The FDA has 173 reports of serious events described as accidental injury, including 28 road traffic accidents and 77 falls, some resulting in fractures of ribs, facial bones, hands, ankles, lower limbs, and even spinal fractures.
Vision disturbance: At least 148 reports of injuries caused by Chantix contained medical terms showing vision disturbances, including 68 cases described as blurred vision and 26 cases showing transient or other forms of blindness. This reported effect could also describe a mechanism that could or contributed to accidents and injuries.
Heart rhythm disturbances: The FDA received 224 domestic reports classified as potential cardiac rhythm disturbances. This category, however, was dominated by reports of a sudden loss of consciousness, an event that could also have non-cardiac causes. However, this category also included smaller numbers [*13] of cardiac arrests and identifiable abnormal cardiac rhythms.
Seizures and abnormal muscle spasms or movements: Reported events included 86 cases of serious convulsion (seizures), 372 reports of a wide variety of movement disorders, including tremors, muscle spasms, twitching, tics, drooling, and motor hyperactivity. The extent to which these problems resolved with a reduced dose or by halting treatment could not be determined from this data.
Moderate and severe skin reactions: 338 cases were reported of serious events including hives or swelling of the tongue, face, eyes, lips, and/or other areas. In addition, 65 cases were classified as severe and included blisters, exfoliation of the skin and lips and Stevens-Johnson Syndrome.
Diabetes: The FDA has received 544 reports suggesting varenicline may be related to a loss of glycemic control. This category included many cases of weight loss or gain that could have alternate causes but also identified numerous cases of symptoms and laboratory test results consistent with new-onset diabetes.
Candidly, the best cases are Chantix suicide cases. Patients in Chantix studies have had both suicidal ideation and death because of suicide. The most difficult Chantix cases we are getting inquiries about are Chantix diabetes cases. Is there reason to believe Chantix causes diabetes? Yes. Whether the evidence accumulates to take those cases to a jury remains to be seen.