Allergan Loses $212 million Botox Side Effect Lawsuit
A 67 year old man in Virginia has won a lawsuit against Botox giant, Allergan Inc. (NYSE:AGN) over its Botox injections for treatment of tremors and cramps in his hand, leading to permanent brain damage.
Allergan Inc. on Thursday was ordered to pay the plaintiff, Douglas M. Ray a sum of $212 million. The amount included a compensatory fee of $12 million and punitive damages of $200 million, according to the verdict announced in the District court of Virginia. The judge, Ray of Fredericksburg said that the Botox manufacturer did not warn its users about its potential side effects.
The side effects which Allergan Inc. failed to inform its customers about the potential of the injections to lead to triggering of an auto immune reaction that could lead to permanent brain damage and also other permanent neuron damage, which can also lead to permanent paralysis. This inefficiency of Allergan led to the 67 year old man developing permanent brain damage, which he will have to live with for the rest of his life.
Allergan’s lawyers however denied the failure of the company to warn about the auto immune reaction, and said that there was no connection between the use of Botox and the permanent brain damage developed by Ray. Caroline Van Hove, the spokesperson for Allergan told reporters that they are undecided whether their company will go for an appeal for the decision. The spokesperson also said that the decision announced by the Virginia court on Thursday is inconsistent with the actions of the company to be unable to inform its physicians and patients about the side effects of Botox, which could lead to potentially harmful problems.
Botox is a popular treatment for people who wish to get a wrinkle free skin. It smoothens wrinkles and also is used for treatment of other diseases and is taken as injections. The drug is actually a poison from the bacteria botulinum that causes food poisoning. The drug is extracted from the culture of these bacteria and used in injections. Botox’s other uses also include smoothing of muscles in the arms and fingers and also to cure spasticity in the upper arm. It is quite popular among middle aged women who take injections of this drug on a weekly basis to keep their skin looking young.
Botox is the top selling drug for Allergan with more than $1.42 billion in sales in just 2010. This drug makes up for 29 percent of the overall revenue of Allergan.
