Eli Lilly facing US lawsuit over Zyprexa
US law firm of Gilman and Pastor has filed a nationwide class action lawsuit in the US District Court, Eastern District of New York on behalf of all persons in the US who purchased Eli Lilly's antipsychotic drug Zyprexa (olanzapine).
US law firm of Gilman and Pastor has filed a nationwide class action lawsuit in the US District Court, Eastern District of New York on behalf of all persons in the US who purchased Eli Lilly's antipsychotic drug Zyprexa (olanzapine).
Promoted and prescribed for the treatment of schizophrenia and bipolar disorders, Zyprexa has been linked to dangerous physical side effects, namely diabetes mellitus, hyperglycemia, pancreatitis, ketoacidosis and diabetic coma. Such was the risk that in 2002 both the Japanese Health and Welfare Ministry and the UK Medicines Control Agency issued emergency warnings concerning Zyprexa and diabetes-related complications.
In July 2002, Duke University conducted a study of Zyprexa based upon the US FDA adverse drug reports database. The study documented 289 reported cases of diabetes from people using Zyprexa. Similarly, in August 2003, researchers from the US Department of Veteran Affairs, Boston University and University of Illinois at Chicago released findings from a study on Zyprexa and other antipsychotic drugs that linked Zyprexa to an increased risk of diabetes, especially among younger patients.
It is reported that in 2002 alone, more than 7.4m prescriptions for Zyprexa were written in the US, representing sales in excess of $2.53bn in sales. Zyprexa has been promoted for off-label uses not approved by the FDA, such as depression and anxiety.