Patterson, Diet Drug, Fen Phen & Mitral Valve Regurgitation: A recent case in the United States Court of Appeals, Third Circuit ruled on an appeal denying claim benefits.
PRESCRIPTION DRUG INJURY
The Patterson, Diet Drug, Fen Phen & Mitral Valve Regurgitation case documents what many victims who took the diet drug and weight loss pill FEN PHEN (redux) may face today – Heart Valve Regurgitation, mitral valve regurgitation, potential primary pulmonary hypertension (pph) or primary arterial hypertension (pah). The court: Affirmed the ruling.
A brief summary of case includes:
- Patterson contends she suffers from moderate mitral regurgitation, a medical condition that, if adequately demonstrated, would qualify her for payment. Patterson submitted her claim to the Trust, supporting it with an attesting physician’s interpretation of an echocardiogram. The Trust referred her claim to an independent auditing cardiologist who concluded that the attesting physician’s opinion lacked a reasonable medical basis. Accordingly, the Trust denied Patterson’s claim.
- This case is part of a multi-district litigation concerning diet drugs previously sold by Wyeth — fenfluramine (marketed as “Pondimin”), and dexfenfluramine (marketed as “Redux”). In previous decisions, we have provided detailed descriptions of the diet drugs litigation.
- The amount of a claimant’s recovery under the Settlement Agreement is determined by damage “matrices” that assess factors such as severity of the medical condition, age of claimant, and length of illness. Patterson seeks Matrix A-1, Level II compensation in the amount of $473,032. In order to recover, a claimant must demonstrate by a reasonable medical basis that she has a qualifying condition.
To find out more on the case, see Case No. 07-1957 – September 11, 2008.
Diet Drug Fen Phen
Fen Phen may be linked to Primary Pulmonary Hypertension (PPH) or Primary Arterial Hypertension (PAH) or Idiopathic Primary Arterial Hypertension (IPAH) (hereinafter “PPH”, “IPAH” or “PAH”) is an increase in blood pressure in the lung vasculature which comprises the pulmonary artery, pulmonary vein or pulmonary capillaries. It is a rare lung disorder in which the blood pressure in the pulmonary artery rises far above normal levels for no apparent reason. PPH or PAH can be one of five different types:
- arterial
- venous
- hypoxic
- thromboembolic
In addition, fen phen has been linked to heart valve damage too – severe heart-valve regurgitation, less severe heart-valve conditions that progress to the more serious levels and Mitral regurgitation.
Mitral regurgitation involves the backward or reverse flow of blood through a defective mitral valve which separates the left atrium of the heart from the left ventricle. Mitral regurgitation occurs during the systolic phase as the left ventricle contracts and pushes blood into the aorta. Because the leaflets comprising the mitral valve have failed to shut properly, blood leaks backward, or regurgitates, into the left atrium. As a result of this reverse flow, the heart must work harder to pump the needed blood throughout the heart and into the body.
Unfortunately, an estimated 500 to 1,000 new cases of Primary Pulmonary Hypertension (PPH) or Primary Arterial Hypertension (PAH) are diagnosed each year, and many doctors and experts believe that Primary Pulmonary Hypertension (PPH) or Primary Arterial Hypertension (PAH) is linked to the diet drug Fen-Phen.
And, the diagnosis of these problems is happening many years (10, 15 plus years) after the drug Fen Phen was stopped and pulled off the market.
For more information on FEN PHEN, click here.
At the Gooch Law Firm, we pride ourselves on providing our clients reliable representation for even the most challenging cases. If you took Fen-Phen and have been diagnosed with one of the above problems, please contact our office at 1.844.329.5955.
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