Dallas Dangerous Drug Attorney | Chantix on Trial

Chantix on Trial

Chantix is a medication manufactured by the Pfizer Corporation that is used to treat the symptoms of smoking cessation. The drug was given a black box warning in 2009 after evidence emerged that users of Chantix were experiencing psychotic symptoms including rage, depression, suicidal thoughts and attempts at suicide. A recent lawsuit alleges that the drug was responsible for a murder suicide that occurred in 2009.

The Drug

Chantix is one of the many drugs on the market that are designed to help people who are quitting smoking achieve better success rates. This particular drug works by diminishing the pleasurable sensations that the smoker gets from taking in nicotine. The side effects, according to a published study and several other sources, include a great deal of aggressive behavior. Users of the drug have been shown to experience greater degrees of aggression, hostility towards others and, in some cases outbursts of violence. The drug has been in use since 2006.

One of the things that motivated the lawsuits against Pfizer about this drug was a study that found that over 90% of the people who experienced these symptoms while they were on Chantix stopped experiencing the symptoms once they quit taking the drug. Over the past five years, Chantix has been implicated in over 400 separate instances of violence.

Drug Cases

Product liability lawsuits quite often involve drug manufacturers. Some of the most famous lawsuits involve claims over birth defects being caused by antidepressant drugs, Crohn's disease being caused by the drug Accutane and several others. Chantix is also currently the subject of a multidistrict lawsuit that is being put together by users who have experienced some of the more disturbing side effects of this drug. The murder suicide case is a separate one.

Getting Help

Product liability law firms will generally be interested in speaking to anyone who believes that they have a case against a drug manufacturer for undisclosed side effects or for side effects that were implied to be much more minor than they were in reality. If you believe that you have been affected by a drug such as Chantix or another drug, contacting such a firm may be a good idea. They can sometimes put together a lawsuit that can result in the plaintiff receiving a substantial amount of money to help them recover from the pain and suffering that the drug has caused and, in some cases, the damages unfortunately include claims for wrongful death.