Pittsburgh PA NuvaRing Injury Lawyers

The dangerous drug lawyers at Dallas W. Hartman, P.C. are currently fielding calls and questions about NuvaRing birth control products. NuvaRing is a birth control contraceptive product that was originally manufactured under a Dutch company known as Organon. Schering-Plough, maker of such products as Levitra and Nasonex, bought Organon’s NuvaRing rights then merged with Merck & Company in 2009 and is known globally as Merck & Company, Incorporated.

NuvaRing is a semi-transparent ring that is inserted into the vagina once a month to help prevent conception. NuvaRing was marketed as easy to use, emitting a small hormonal dosage equal to taking a daily birth control pill with the convenience of not actually taking the pill. Convenience is the number one reason women chose NuvaRing.

Risk factors associated with NuvaRing

Despite the “easy-to-use” marketing campaigns that Merck provided for NuvaRing, there are several issues that arise from using the product. Improper insertion of the ring is the most substantial of these problems. Inappropriate placement of NuvaRing can be exacerbated during sexual intercourse. This can cause urinary tract infections, headaches, nausea, vaginitis (painful inflammation of the vagina), and leukorrhea, which is a thick yellowish vaginal discharge. These side effects are somewhat common, but there are others that are much more dangerous and life-threatening.

NuvaRing contains chemical compounds called Ethinyl estradiol and 3-keto-desogestrel. Ethinyl estradiol is a bioactive estrogen and 3-keto-desogestrel is used with Ethinyl estradiol as a hormonal contraceptive. These types of oral contraceptives, known as “third-generation” contraceptives, can increase women’s risks of blood clots by thickening the blood in areas where clots take place most often. In addition to blood clots, thickening of blood can also lead to stroke, DVT (deep vein thrombosis), blockage of arteries, necrosis, and even death.

One of the greatest risks of NuvaRing is the previously mentioned DVT. Physicians and medical experts believe that there are thousands of women who have developed deep vein thrombosis from the use of NuvaRing, according to a 2010 article published in Contraception. It also reported that oral contraceptives such as NuvaRing greatly increase the incidents of several other types of thrombosis that can range from semi-serious to life-threatening, as described by the Journal of Emergency Medicine. And the WHO (World Health Organization) recommends that women should not use NuvaRing if they have a history of thrombosis or will be undergoing surgery that may leave them immobile for an extended period of time.

What is the ultimate problem with NuvaRing?

NuvaRing discharges estrogen and progesterone into a woman’s bloodstream. The concern that high levels of these hormones can cause blood clotting and other cardiac problems, such as pulmonary embolism, is a very real threat. At Dallas W. Hartman, P.C., we believe that Organon, Schering-Plough, and Merck were well aware of these issues, but failed to deliver the FDA the full realm of information that consumers need to make educated choices about their contraceptive products.

Call Dallas W. Hartman, P.C. today for a free preliminary consultation

Our veteran staff of successful dangerous drug lawyers has been researching the questionable marketing and manufacturing practices of Merck & Company for well over a decade. We have in the past and are now reviewing potential lawsuits for women who have used NuvaRing and suffered from any one of the many thrombotic problems associated with the product. Currently, NuvaRing manufacturers and their subsidiaries are being sued for neglecting to inform women who used the product that despite the fact that NuvaRing advertises low hormone transference, higher levels of transference can take place for certain people who were not made aware of this risk before using the ring.

Please call the dangerous drug attorneys at Dallas W. Hartman, P.C. today for a free preliminary NuvaRing consultation. For over twenty-five years, we have been helping women like you who were injured through no fault of their own by negligent medication manufacturers who make the decision to outweigh patient safety with corporate profits. Oftentimes, companies like Merck know full well of the risk factors surrounding their drugs, but also know that they will profit so well from these products that subsequent lawsuits are worth the risk of the potential money they will make from a given medication.

You can contact us through our website by clicking here, or you can call (toll-free) 800-777-4081. We have law professionals standing by twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week waiting to answer basic questions and refer you to one of our defective drug lawyers. Remember, the attorney you choose DOES make a difference. Contact Dallas W. Hartman, P.C. today.