AndroGel Side Effects Include Blood Clots In Lungs and Possible Heart Attacks

The official AndroGel website claims that the testosterone in the medicine is the same as that produced naturally by the body. While this may be true, AndroGel user Natale Cataudella believes the product led him to experience blood clots shortly after beginning treatment. Cataudella has filed a lawsuit against the makers of the drug, claiming that the risks of blood clots and heart attack are not well known among patients being prescribed external androgen drugs. AndroGel Lawsuit Cataudella’s legal complaint points out that natural drops in testosterone levels are not necessarily the result of serious conditions such as hypogonadism. It further argues that the list of “symptoms of low T” enumerated in the product’s commercials are as attributable to the natural process of aging as they are a specific hormone deficiency. Cataudella has hired an injury from prescription drugs attorney to handle his case. His attorney is on record as saying his client would have either declined the therapy had he known of the dangers or would have at least monitored for the possibility of blood clots. The Legal Ramifications Prescription drug companies like AbbVie, Inc. fear lawsuits such as Natale Cataudella, not because of the potentially significant judgment awaiting them at the end of the trial but because they invite scrutiny and bad publicity. Indeed, a closer look at androgen therapy may be disastrous for those drug companies who make their profits off the backs of these medications. While we are far from the day when we will see what a jury makes of Cataudella’s claims, an investigation into low testosterone therapies is probably long overdue. Low-T If you mentioned the apparently widespread condition advertised as “Low-T” to doctors fifteen years ago, you would have probably been met with little more than a confused smile. Thanks to an onslaught of media awareness, however, the public has accepted that low testosterone is a health problem that needs to be addressed with medication. AndroGel and other hormone replacement therapies are intended to restore the body’s testosterone levels to a “normal” level. Application choices include injections, patches, pellets, and gels. The Other Side of Science While the makers of AndroGel are compelled to provide a list of side effects along with their advertisements, the question is whether the manufacturers provided adequate warnings to doctors and patients. Studies have shown a link between AndroGel and cases of blood clots and cardiac arrests. These cases are particularly linked to patients over the age of 40 with pre-existing histories of heart disease. It may be only a matter of time before a class action lawsuit lawyer takes a close look at these links. Should that happen, it could spell disaster for not just the makers of AndroGel but for the entire hormone replacement industry. Studies from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) published in nationwide medical journals, and lawsuits forming from personal experiences with the drug have led many to consider the dangers of taking AndroGel and other androgen products. The NCI, for example, found that the first three months of treatment led to a doubling in heart attack risks in men over 65. A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association pointed to the risk of a heart attack tripling in men under 65 when compared to those who had never undergone testosterone therapy. Class Action With these kinds of numbers, it may be only a matter of time before a drug lawsuit lawyer rounds up those who have been injured by AndroGel for a class action lawsuit. As more patients come forward with their stories and more studies are conducted, the outlook grows dimmer for the manufacturers of the medication. A major lawsuit could provide compensation for individuals negatively affected by the drug, but it could also shine a spotlight on the importance of disclosing and explaining all possible side effects to prescription drug patients.