Ortho Evra Health Risks

• Heart Attack
• Stroke
• Pulmonary Embolism
• Blood Clots

Health Risks of the Ortho Evra patch include the possibility of blood clots in the legs or lungs and hypertension. Additionally, the side effects of Ortho Evra may lead to further complications and other health risks. For these reasons, women who smoke or have a history of migraines, high blood pressure, diabetes, abnormal and unexplained vaginal bleeding, blood clots, liver cancer or disease, breast or uterine cancer, stroke or heart attack should not risk their health by using Ortho Evra.

In 2004, there were 9,677 reports of adverse effects from Ortho Evra birth control patch.

Among the side effects reported have been debilitating strokes, leaving some users almost completely paralyzed. Ortho Evra lawsuits have been filed nationwide on behalf of women who have died or been seriously injured by blood clots allegedly caused by the Ortho Evra patch.

On July 25, 2005, ten women filed a lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson and its subsidiary Ortho McNeil, alleging the Ortho Evra patch caused them to suffer strokes and blood clots. The lawsuit calls the product “unreasonably dangerous” and contends the patch is “defectively designed.”

The FDA has received twenty-one reports of life-threatening blood clots and other ailments associated with Ortho Evra birth control patch use. The contraceptive patch, which has been aggressively marketed using Olympic athletes, sexy ads and fashion models, has been linked to the deaths of at least seventeen young American women over the past two years. FDA records show that seventeen patch users between the ages of 17 and 30 have suffered fatal heart attacks, blood clots and possible strokes since August 2002. The first fatality publicly blamed on the Ortho Evra patch was in April 2005, when a Manhattan fashion student collapsed in a city subway station. An autopsy found that a blood clot had moved into the victim's lung, and the medical examiner ruled that the clot was a side effect of the birth control device. Ortho-McNeil, the manufacturer or the Ortho Evra birth control patch, has aggressively marketed the patch as a convenient alternative to oral birth control pills. Its original product label stated that the patch's health risks were similar to those related to oral contraceptives.

The FDA still has not taken action to protect women from these potentially serious side effects. In fact, the agency initially approved the patch in spite of evidence that Ortho Evra greatly increased the risk of strokes and blood clots. The FDA has come under fire lately for not responding adequately to public health concerns, including the delayed response with the prescription drug Vioxx.

If you are a victim of the Ortho Evra birth control patch, it is important that you contact an experienced, knowledgeable defective drug attorney in a timely manner.