Hundreds of men throughout the United States have filed lawsuits to seek justice for their injuries from using the popular hair loss drug Propecia. These men who trusted Propecia’s manufacturer Merck, assumed that the hair loss drug was safe, and that Merck had appropriately disclosed all of the side effects connected with the drug’s use. Unfortunately, this has not been the case.
Since there has been a large amount of lawsuit filings, and because of the anticipated increase in Propecia lawsuits, a Propecia MDL (“Multidistrict Litigation”) has been established in the Eastern District of New York to collect and process all Propecia lawsuits filed across the nation.
Propecia’s Harmful Side Effects
The FDA approved Propecia (finasteride 1 mg) for male pattern hair loss. Since it has been introduced to the market in the late 1990’s, thousands of men have used the hair loss drug with the presumption of growing back or at least maintaining their hairline. However, recent studies have shown that Propecia has been correlated with impotence, erectile dysfunction, loss of libido, lowered semen output, testicular pain, and orgasm disorders, even after discontinuation of the drug.
Unfortunately, for the men who tried this medicine for hair loss, Merck only warned that Propecia may cause temporary sexual side effects while using the drug, but failed to disclose the fact that these side effects could be permanent for some men after stopping use. In fact, the company assuredly stated the complete opposite: that all sexual side effects “went away” in all men who used the drug:
A small number of men experienced certain sexual side effects. These men reported one or more of the following: less desire for sex; difficulty in achieving an erection; and, a decrease in the amount of semen. Each of these side effects occurred in less than 2% of men. These side effects went away in men who stopped taking PROPECIA. They also disappeared in most men who continued taking PROPECIA.
In 2012, as a result of men suffering persistent and harmful sexual side effects, the FDA required Merck to modify Propecia’s labeling “libido disorders, ejaculation disorders, and orgasm disorders that continued after discontinuation of the drug,” as well as incidents of male infertility and poor semen quality.
If the sexual side effects were not alarming enough for this cosmetic drug, recent studies have demonstrated that the Finasteride in Propecia can cause other serious and harmful side effects. Men who have used Propecia for hair loss have been shown to have an increased likelihood of oppressing issues of anxiety, depression, and thoughts of suicide. Moreover, Propecia has been linked to problems with clouding of consciousness, impaired cognitive ability and loss of memory. In addition to that and even more disheartening, Propecia may cause penile deformity (including Peyronie’s disease) and a version of high grade cancer of the prostate.
The Basis For Filing A Propecia Lawsuit
Male pattern balding and hair loss occurrs naturally, it is cosmetic and not a disease. In many instances, hair loss can be troublesome for the men experiencing it and many men have said “I never would have taken this drug if I knew I could be permanently injured…my hair is definitely not worth this.” These men were denied an informed choice about using Propecia.
Because of the undisclosed, harmful side effects, many men across the country have subsequently filed a Propecia lawsuit against Merck for permanent injuries that they now face. These men used Merck’s “miracle” hair loss drug to combat their thinning hair; they trusted that the pill was safe and trusted Merck that the side effects would “go away” if they tried and stopped taking Propecia. For hundreds, and possibly thousands of men, these severe side effects have not “gone away.” Consequently, the number of filed Propecia lawsuits are now at an all time high for men seeking justice for their injuries.
For more information on determining if you may have been permanently injured by Propecia and if you may in fact have a Propecia lawsuit visit www.propecialawsuits.com.