Ortho Evra Side Effects

Lawsuits have been filed by women who allege they suffered serious Ortho Evra side effects, which reportedly include blood clots in the legs and lungs as well as heart attacks and strokes. Women who use the Ortho Evra patch allege they were harmed by use of the birth control patch, while some families claim their loved ones died after using Ortho Evra birth control.

Johnson & Johnson and its subsidiary Ortho McNeil, manufacturer of the Ortho Evra Patch, has so far paid $68.7 million to settle more than 4,000 state and federal lawsuits brought about by women who have suffered adverse side effects, from blood clots in legs and lungs to heart attack and stroke, from using this potentially lethal contraceptive device. Ortho Evra has also been blamed for 20 deaths.

The lawsuits claimed that Johnson & Johnson knew about higher levels of estrogen released by the Ortho Evra patch but failed to warn users that they could be at higher risk to suffer blood clots and other adverse side effects than women who use other forms of oral birth control such as the pill.

A lead plaintiff attorney told Bloomberg News that, as of March 31, 2008, a fund has paid out just over $2 million to settle several hundred cases.

On December 8, 2011, a US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory panel voted to strengthen the warnings on the Ortho Evra label, to include risks associated with use of the patch. The FDA panel was convened to discuss information from the FDA that the use of the Ortho Evra Patch was associated with increased risk of venous thromboembolic events (VTE) compared with contraceptives that contain a lower dose of estrogen.

July 17th, 2005, the Associated Press International (API) reported that they were aware of at least a dozen women, most in their late teens and twenties who died in 2004 due to blood clots that are believed to be related to the use of the Ortho Evra Patch. According to 16,000 federal drug reports filed with the FDA, dozens more women survived strokes and other blood-clot related side effects In fact, API found 23 different fatalities associated with the patch, but the primary cause of death in each case was not always clear.

Some people suspect that there are many more deaths related to Ortho Evra but that aren't reported as such because coroners or doctors are not considering the effect of birth control in the fatal or near-fatal event, so they are not reporting all cases to the government.

These cases are incredible tragedies for the victims and their families. In one case, a 25 year old woman had a stroke and was placed in the Intensive Care Unit, where her condition was so fragile that her family was unable to speak or touch her in any way because even the slightest amount of stimulation could create a fatal level of pressure on her brain.

After the death of this beloved sister, daughter and wife, the coroner stated that her headaches and stroke may have been side effects of the high hormone levels in Ortho Evra. In March 2004, a young woman from New York died after being on the patch six weeks. A 17-year-old St. Louis girl using Ortho-Evra died from a pulmonary embolism, which is a deadly blood clot.

Young women are typically at low risk for blood clots and strokes, but with the use of Ortho Evra, these young women are having strokes, heart attacks and even dying at increased rates.

In November 2005, Ortho McNeil, the makers of Ortho Evra, revised the birth control warning label to include additional risks and side effects:

"Most side effects of the Patch are not serious and those that are, occur infrequently. Serious risks, which can be life threatening, include blood clots, stroke and heart attacks and are increased if you smoke cigarettes."

Women using the Ortho Evra Patch are "exposed to about 60% more estrogen if they use ORTHO EVRA than if they use a typical birth control pill containing 35 micrograms of estrogen. In general, increased estrogen exposure increases the risk of side effects."

These changes to the label do little to warn women and their doctors of the potential risk of dying while using the Ortho Evra birth control patch.

Ortho Evra was the first contraceptive patch approved in 2002 by the FDA for Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceuticals under the giant company Johnson & Johnson. Ortho Evra and other birth control methods for these pharmaceutical companies generates over $1 billion in annual sales.

Ortho Evra Patch Legal Help

If you have or a loved on has suffered from blood clots, heart attack or stroke, while using Ortho Evra, you may qualify for damages or remedies that may be awarded in an Ortho Evra class action or lawsuit. Please click the link below to submit your complaint to an Ortho Evra lawyer for a free case evaluation.
Last updated on Apr-10-14