New Orleans, LAThe saddest aspect of testosterone side effects, is that for a growing majority of men in America those side effects are unnecessary and tragic, given the marketing spin undertaken by manufacturers of testosterone supplements and the hesitation by the federal drug regulator to clamp down on indications for a product beyond that for which it was originally approved.
As revealed by LawyersandSettlements.com senior writer Jane Mundy, testosterone supplementation was originally approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for one thing and one thing only - hypogonadism, a serious condition that is often characterized by undescended testes and a seriously low level of testosterone. Such low levels can and do carry substantial health risks for men, and for whom testosterone supplementation makes sense.
For the majority of men, however, for whom gradual drops in testosterone levels is a natural sign of aging, a manufacturing industry bent on catering to seekers of the fountain of youth have found ways to market testosterone supplements for alleged symptoms of testosterone deficiency that have little to do with hypogonadism, morphing testosterone supplements into a $2 billion industry that is poised to grow even further.
The FDA’s response, in January of this year, was to issue a public safety communication.
Meanwhile, users of testosterone supplements, having bought into the marketing hype, are suffering needlessly from testosterone side effects. Many are filing a testosterone lawsuit.
Lawsuits still coming
One of the latest is at the behest of a plaintiff from Louisiana alleging testosterone stroke from the AndroGel he used. The testosterone lawsuit, filed in the Eastern District of Louisiana in April, alleges health problems following use of AndroGel beginning in September 2011 when the plaintiff was 66 years of age. The plaintiff, in court documents, notes that he was motivated toward testosterone supplementation thanks to marketing campaigns undertaken by AndroGel manufacturer, AbbVie Inc.
According to court records, the plaintiff continued using AndroGel until January 2013. Less than a month later, in February of that year, the plaintiff suffered a testosterone stroke - the results of which are having major impacts on his life.
The plaintiff claims that he now suffers from reduced memory, speech and vision in both eyes, and is at risk for having more strokes and the potential for testosterone death, allegedly due to his use of AndroGel. The plaintiff must now undergo regular testing for the remainder of his days, take regular medication and adhere to a restrictive diet.
It has been reported elsewhere that testosterone heart attack is a possibility with testosterone supplementation.
Advocates of testosterone supplementation for purely medical reasons accuse critics of fear-mongering. It is true that testosterone supplementation has its place, and is vital to men with seriously low levels of testosterone - deficiencies that can pose serious health risks. For these patients, the benefit/risk ratio weighs more heavily toward use of testosterone supplements such as AndroGel, to counteract potential health problems inherent with low testosterone. For these patients, testosterone side effects can pale in comparison to the impact severely low testosterone has had on life and livelihood.
However, critics decry the marketing ploys of manufacturers who push testosterone toward men who may not need it. In so doing, they could be exposing themselves to grievous testosterone side effects needlessly.
Many a testosterone lawsuit has been filed since the FDA safety communication was issued in January, and efforts are underway to consolidate those lawsuits. More are expected.
This most recent testosterone lawsuit was filed April 24, 2014 in US District Court, Eastern District of Louisiana, Case No. 2:14-cv-00935); (In Re: Testosterone Products Liability Litigation, No. 42, JPML).
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