Vytorin/Zetia

High cholesterol is a growing and serious public health issue, and according to the American Heart Association, more than 100 million people in the United States have cholesterol readings of 200 or higher, which is a daunting statistic.  High cholesterol levels can lead to serious medical results, including heart failure and other long-term health problems. 

As a result, several pharmaceutical companies have decided to jump into the realm of medication for this health condition, and billions of dollars have been spent towards research and development of medications to treat high cholesterol.  Most companies have seen a positive return on this research, however, in that many individual cholesterol medications generate billions of dollars in revenue every year.

Even though many cholesterol medications have been beneficial to many patients, not all of them are without scrutiny, and in some cases extreme scrutiny based on the side effects to which they’ve been linked.  Two such medications that fall within this realm are Vytorin and Zetia, which have been the subject of recent news reports for reasons that are not positive.

These drugs have come under fire for two reasons.  The first is because they have been linked to serious side effects that include the possibility of extreme liver damage and rhabdomyolysis, a medical condition whereby the patient’s skeletal muscles progressively degenerate, ultimately leading to the death of a patient who does not get treatment. 

The second reason for this scrutiny is because of the allegedly misleading television advertising that’s been promoting these two medications in recent years.  Specifically, the commercials in question state that Vytorin and Zetia are more effective than other statins, or cholesterol drugs, even though studies have proven otherwise.  One estimate states that over $180 million per year was spent on this advertising campaign.

Your Next Step if injured from Vytorin Zetia

If you or someone you love has suffered side effects as a result of taking either Vytorin or Zetia, or you’ve been spending needless extra money on these medications because you believed that they were the best options available to you based on the inundation of advertising that carried that specific message, you need to take action immediately.

Contact a defective drugs attorney as soon as possible to schedule an initial consultation.  You may have an injury claim for any side effects you suffered, and you may also have an opportunity to join a group of plaintiffs in a class action lawsuit designed to help those who have been misled by this advertising campaign.