| By :
Nick Messe
Reglan, a drug used to treat nausea, vomiting and also migraine headaches, has been reported to cause permanent, irreversible tardive dyskinesia, a disorder marked by uncontrollable movements of the face, limbs and other parts of the body. In February 2009, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration required the manufacturer of Reglan and other similar drugs to add the FDA's harshest "black box warning" to the drug, advising against long-term and high dosage use of the active ingredient in Reglan. Health care advocates and lawyers are particularly concerned because the movement disorder linked to the drug cannot be reversed once it has developed. It becomes a permanent condition for those who develop it, and very few effective treatments are available. Class action lawsuits have been filed against some companies who manufacture the active ingredient in Reglan and attorneys hope to help people experiencing tardive dyskenesia get compensation. The suits claim makers did not warn users and their doctors of potential risks and that manufacturers did not take action to investigate claims of side effects once they learned of them. Other allegations have been made as well, including charges that the companies did not follow the drug's use in the marketplace closely enough after its release. Medical bills, lost wages and pain and suffering awards may be available to patients who have been harmed by the drug Reglan in any way. Participating in a class action lawsuit can allow patients to recover these and other damages. Drug manufacturer representatives, including Reglan attorneys, will vigorously defend their product and their clients if cases go to court, and lawyers are not expected to settle the case without considerable effort from those working on behalf of patients injured by the drug and others like it. Tardive dyskinesia is a difficult-to-treat involuntary movement disorder that causes people to stick out their tongues, smack and pucker their lips, move their eyes or eyelids rapidly and move arms and legs without purpose. Other sudden and involuntary movements have also been seen in patients. The condition is not fully understood by researchers despite having been known for more than 50 years. Reglan, manufactured by Schwarz Pharma, is one of several brand names of metoclopramide, a drug that is a commonly used treatment for migraine headaches. Other brands of this drug include Maxolon, Degan, Pramin and Cerucal. Originally intended for treating nausea and vomiting, the drug is effective against frequent heartburn, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and similar conditions. Research published recently indicates Reglan and other brands of metoclopramide are the most frequent cause of movement disorders related to drugs, even in patients who did not exceed the FDA-recommended treatment length of four to 12 weeks. While the movement disorder is the most serious Reglan side effect, other minor ones can include high or low blood pressure, constipation and even depression.
|
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://www.articlesbacklink.com/images/icon_Rss.png "XML Feed For RSS"){kind=icon}
Category Rss Feed
Print This Article
Add To Favorites
