Imagine being unable to stop smacking your lips, making faces or sticking out your tongue. How about constant blinking or moving your eyes, arms, legs or fingers? If you’ve taken Reglan and this happened to you, you could have Tardive Dyskinesia. It’s a side effect that is rarely reversible. Although there is no known cure, some symptoms may diminish once victims are off the drug.
In February 2009, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) slapped a “Black Box Warning” on Reglan, the strongest alert it can put on a medication. It also ordered Reglan’s manufacturer, Wyeth, to display the Black Box warning on prescriptions for Reglan and develop a medication guide for patients that discusses the risk. The federal agency also warned that Reglan should not be taken in large doses or for more than three months.
Reglan is the brand name of metoclopramide, a drug used to treat GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease), a severe form of heartburn and related conditions, including heartburn in diabetics (diabetic gastro paresis). Metoclopramide prevents nausea and vomiting by moving food faster through the digestive tract. Teva Pharmaceuticals, Pliva, Pharma and Baxter Healthcare sell generic equivalents of Reglan.
Reglan has also been prescribed for infants with symptoms of vomiting or esophageal reflux and pregnant women. But seniors, especially elderly women, seem to be the most vulnerable to Tardive Dyskinesia when taking Reglan.
It’s estimated that 60 million Americans have heartburn. For 25 million in the United States, heartburn is an everyday event. Attorney Jim Alder advises anyone taking Reglan, or one of its generic equivalents to contact their doctor immediately and then seek legal advice. Tardive Dyskenisia is a drug-induced disability that can cause life-long suffering.
Beauty knows no pain,” the old saying goes. But it does have a price. Illegal Botox scammers are paying with fines and prison sentences. Victims are paying with facial paralysis. What the beauty-seekers hoped would eliminate forehead wrinkles put some in the hospital. Botox is made from the toxin of a bacterium that causes botulism, a severe form of food poisoning. The scammers knowingly used a cheaper version of it that is not approved by the FDA. Twenty-nine people, including several doctors, were convicted of knowingly injecting the unapproved Botox into nearly 1,000 victims. The FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations (OCI) handled the case after four victims were hospitalized. There were no deaths and the paralysis was temporary. But the OCI uncovered instances of illegal Botox use across the United States, resulting in 68 arrests. Botox Cosmetic is the only FDA approved version of Botox. It is made from highly purified botulinum toxin. Small amounts of it injected between the eyes, affect the muscles ability to contract, smoothing out facial wrinkles for several months.
The Consumer Products Safety Commission warns against putting infants on younger than 8 months of air mattresses, or other soft surfaces (water beds or adult beds). The agency reports that 11 infants suffocated in a face down position. Five others died when they slipped between mattresses and bed frames or adjacent furniture or the wall.
KYMCO USA says riders of its 2006-2008 Model Year MXU 500 ATVs risk death or injury because pivot bolts holding the rear suspension onto the frame can become loose, causing the rear swing arm to detach from the chassis. The Spartanburg , South Carolina company is voluntarily recalling 1,350 of the models.
