Sanofi-Aventis’ PALLAS study was halted after patients started dying from taking Multaq as a treatment for permanent AF. Afterwards, some people started questioning whether conducting the study was responsible considering that numerous patients were already complaining that the drug caused them to suffer from liver failure when the study began.
The PALLAS study had researchers testing Multaq as an AF treatment for patients over 65 years of age with permanent atrial fibrillation. As patients began to experience a worsening of their heart conditions, the deaths forced Sanofi to halt the study. Inevitably, the FDA was forced to issue a safety warning against Multaq in July 2011 due to the complications with the PALLAS study. By December 2011, the FDA updated its warnings against Multaq to include liver failure and a worsening of the heart condition. Currently, the FDA is recommending that Multaq be used only in the event that other drugs fail.
With so much danger linked to Multaq, it is a wonder that the drug hasn’t been recalled altogether — especially since there are various other treatments for AF that have proven safer than Multaq, including catheter ablations, Warfarin, Apixaban and others. Most recently, a new study that sought to compare the efficacy of Amiodarone against the efficacy of Bepridil in conversion to sinus rhythm in AF patients found that Bepridil worked best. At this point, just about anything is better than Multaq in terms of patient safety. But until Multaq is recalled, patients will continue to suffer from liver failure and a worsening of their heart conditions while taking the drug.
If you or a loved one has suffered from liver failure or a worsening heart condition after being treated with Multaq, contact the attorney’s at Greg Jones today for a free consultation. I am experienced at fighting Multaq lawsuits and may be able to help you recover money for your injuries.