Consumers depend on medicinal products to be safe, but what if they aren't? What if the product wasn't tested enough or worse yet what if the product produces horrible side effects and no one was warned about said side effects? Sadly more often than not, this happens a lot. I'm not really sure if the company producing these products really just doesn't care about hurting rather than helping people, or if the companies really are just irresponsible and don't take the time needed to test the products in ways they should be. These problems don't just arise with medicinal products but food products as well, I'm sure we all remember the spinach recall in 2006 when people were getting sick after eating spinach that was contaminated with E. coli 0157 bacteria!



Back in early 2008 a company named Baxter which supplied a form of medicine called Heparin Sodium was recalled after people started getting really bad side effects which included abdominal pain, decreased blood pressure, burning sensation, chest pain, diarrhea, dizziness, drug ineffectiveness, dyspepsia, dyspnea, erythema, flushing, headache, hyperhidrosis, hypoesthesia, hypotension, increased lacrimation, loss of consciousness, malaise, nausea, pallor, palpitations, paresthesia, pharyngeal edema, restlessness, vomiting/retching, stomach discomfort, tachycardia, thirst, and trismus and yes even death. In fact, more than 80 deaths happened because of this. Heparin acts as an anticoagulant, preventing the formation of clots and extension of existing clots within the blood. Its used for such things as:

- Acute coronary syndrome, e.g., myocardial infarction

- Atrial fibrillation

- Deep-vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism

- Cardiopulmonary bypass for heart surgery

So how did it come that a product that was supposed to "help" people only ended up hurting people? Sadly, Baxter made a statement saying that they didn't know why or how something like this happened, and that they were in the process of a in-depth investigation to determine the root cause of the reported reactions. Well, I don't know about you but this really isn't good enough for me. I was under the assumption that we the public were safe (especially in the United States of America) from "accidents" such as these, furthermore the "don't know why and don't know how" makes me a little exasperated at the company in itself. In order to produce medicinal products, shouldn't you have at least a little responsibility to not only the people you are allowing to take it (without proper tests being allocated) but they are also putting other people into a dangerous state of being; The other people I'm referring to are the families of the people taking these products.

The law in most states provides several personal injury claims for people who have been seriously injured due to defective prescription drugs and treatments. These claims include strict liability for a defective product, failure to warn, and negligence. In the lawsuits against Baxter, clients have charged that Baxter sold Heparin that was defective due to contamination and inadequate inspection of its product. Baxter allegedly failed to undertake adequate testing that would have shown that its Heparin posed a life-threatening risk to patients.

If you are one of the many people that have been affected by Baxter and the Heparin recall its your right as a citizen of the United States of America to find a lawyer and place a civil suit against the company. If you would like more information on how to do so please visit the following websites for more information on Baxter, the Heparin Recall and much more:

Wikipedia

FDA

Health Central

RXlist