But the drug, which is used in 60 percent of all bypass procedures, actually contributes to decreased health in bypass patients by doubling heart bypass patients' risk of developing dialysis-demanding kidney failure, in addition to increasing the possibility of future strokes, heart attacks, and even death. In fact, it is estimated that use of the Trasylol-Aprotinin injection causes 10,000 cases of kidney failure in heart bypass patients every year.
Other Staggering Statistics
10,000 is a huge number...but what about 109 or even 181 percent? These are the percentages by which Trasylol patients are at risk for heart failure and stroke, respectively. In addition, Trasylol has been proven to make bypass surgery patients twice as likely to suffer kidney failure.
This will lead to hundreds of millions of dollars in healthcare costs - a number that stands in stark contrast to Bayer's December 2005 announcement that the drug had a $615 million sales potential.
And the statistics don't stop there - a January 2006 study by researchers at the Ischemic Research and Education Foundation in California stated that switching to generic Trasylol alternatives, such as tranexamic acid or aminocaproic acid, could not only prevent over 11,000 kidney complications a year, but could also reduce worldwide drug costs by over $200 million and save over a billion healthcare dollars. Serious statistics for a drug that has been given rise to serious medical concerns.
Bayer Continues to Market and Promote
As recently as March 2006, Bayer AG continued to vehemently defend and market its potentially dangerous drug, Trasylol. It is currently pushing to have the drug approved for use in hip replacement surgeries, thus widening the drug's potential market - and exposing an ever larger market to its dangerous side effects.
Though the drug costs 10 times more than its generic counterparts (which have not been proven to provoke any dangerous renal or heart symptoms), Bayer AG continues to promote and sell it to over 1 million bypass and other heart surgery patients per year.
If You Have Experienced Side Effects
If you have experienced negative side effects due to your use of injectable Trasylol-Aprotinin, including but not limited to encephalopathy, renal failure, heart problems, or stroke, contact an experienced pharmaceutical products attorney after seeking competent medical care.
Your Trasylol lawyer can assess your potential case, help you file your lawsuit, and even help you gain monetary compensation for your medical bills, lost wages, future medical care and pain and suffering due to the dangerous side effects of Trasylol-Aprotinin.
Patients who have undergone extreme heart-related surgical procedures like heart bypass surgery do not deserve to continue the suffering that can be related to Trasylol-Aprotinin's dangerous side effects.
