When it comes to taking medication for a disease or a condition, it is not unheard of the patients won't pay attention to the side effects that have a one in one millionth of a chance of occurring. In most cases, the likelihood of experiencing a side effect is extremely small, though it is the responsibility of the pharmaceutical companies to warn you of all possibilities. Unfortunately, this was not the case for the Johnson & Johnson company who has been discovered to have disclosed some of the most devastating side effects from both medical professionals and patients, which has led to results that no person wants to experience.
The prescription Risperdal (risperidone is the generic name) was developed back in 1994 by J&J's subsidiary company, Janssen-Cilag and it was designed in order to treat schizophrenia as well as bipolar disorders in adults. The product was not approved until 2006 to be used for adolescents, though J&J has been found to have been falsely advertising their product to minors years prior to their official FDA approval; one of the many dishonest acts that this company has done to the fault of their patients. The biggest concern that the U.S. Justice Department has with this world renown pharmaceutical company is the fact that their Risperdal drug has certain side effects for the patients taking the prescription, which they knew about in past studies and failed to disclose to the FDA prior to releasing the drug.
According to a study published in Psychopharmacology titled "Galactorrhea and Gynecomastia in a Hypothyroid Male Being Treated With Risperidone" in 1999, researchers learned that those taking any form of the risperidone drug were much more likely to suffer from elevated levels of the prolactin hormone. However the elevating levels were at no small amount, they found that men specifically were nearly doubling in the range of what is concerned to be an average level of that hormone. So, what is this devastating side effect that is caused by the elevated hormone levels? Gynecomastia is considered to be the benign growth of tissues in the male breast, causing them essentially to grow so large that they appear female-like. Some cases revealed that men had reached the equivalent of a size D-Cup bra.
When a patient suffered from gynecomastia, it is also likely that he will experience galatorrhea which is the discharge of a milky white substance from the breast, similar to that of breast milk. Obviously, these functions are not normal in a male person, and while it can lead to embarrassment and physical discomfort, these conditions are also known to lead to testicular cancer, or other serious medical conditions as well.
At this point in time, there are a number of lawsuits being pursued for compensation after the suffering of these victims, primarily over the fact that they were never warned of the possibility of male breasts. Even woman who have been treated with these drugs were known to experience breast discharge as well. Other side effects from using this drug include weight gain, drowsiness, vomiting, fevers, restless, tremors and many others. Reports show that there are an estimated 100 cases of males who have grown breasts because of their exposure to this drug for their mental and behavior conditions. Sadly, when a person is already suffering with varying levels of behavioral illnesses, experiencing an embarrassing condition such as male breasts does not help with their treatment to recover in any way, in fact it can make it worse. There are another 300 cases at least that are being pursued against Johnson & Johnson for the defective product of Risperdal, no relating to male breast growth.
If you are a victim of this defective drug, contact a medical malpractice attorney today!