According to recent reports, patients that are taking the anti-clotting drug Pradaxa have a 33% higher risk of heart attack or severe symptoms of heart disease than patients taking Warfarin. The finding, from Cleveland Clinic researchers Ken Uchino, MD, and Adrian V. Hernandez, MD, PhD, is based on data from seven clinical trials that enrolled 30,514 patients. “The risk of [heart attack] or acute coronary syndrome is increased with [Pradaxa] compared with various control treatments, which include adjusted-dose Warfarin, [Lovenox], or placebo,” Uchino and Hernandez concluded. Acute coronary syndrome — acute symptoms of serious heart disease — is usually caused by the rupture of a plaque in a heart artery. In an editorial accompanying the study in the Jan. 9 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, journal editor Rita Redberg, MD, noted that this is not the first safety warning issued for Pradaxa.
If you or a loved one has experienced serious side effects after taking Pradaxa, you can contact Stark & Stark and speak to one of the Mass Tort attorneys, free of charge, who can help assess any claims that you might have against Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc.