Tekturna Lawyer - d'Oliveira & Associates, P.C.

The hypertension (high blood pressure) drug TEKTURNA has been linked to severe side effects such as kidney problems, strokes, and other, life-threatening complications. We are working with some of the leading Tekturna attorneys in the United States. A claim and/or Tekturna lawsuit can be filed on your behalf and there is no fee until you receive an award or a settlement. Contact us for a free consultation online or toll free at 1-800-992-6878.

Tekturna was approved by the FDA in 1997 and is manufactured by Novartis. Tekturna is used to treat high blood pressure. It is prescribed either alone or in combination with other drugs that treat the same condition. Tekturna works within the kidneys to regulate the enzyme rennin within the body and to remove water from the blood. The rennin regulation process narrows the blood vessels and helps to stimulate the kidneys. Removing the water within the blood then in turn decreases blood pressure to make it easier for blood to pass through the circulatory system.

Tekturna was originally marketed to treat high blood pressure, but due to underwhelming sale of the drug, Novartis looked to expand the market to severe renal (kidney) failure as a result of type-two diabetes. Novartis launched a clinical trial of the drug Tekturna that was titled ALTITUDE. Novartis stopped this clinical trial due to the discovery of severe long-term effects. The clinical trial actually showed that Tekturna was likely to increase the occurrence of non-fatal stroke, kidney complications, hyperkalemia (high potassium levels) and hypotension (dangerously low blood pressure). This study was known as the ALTITUDE study and was halted in December 2011 due to the occurrence of serious side effects. Side effects linked to Tekturna include:

• ACUTE RENAL FAILURE: Your kidneys remove waste from your body and help to balance the salt and water excretion in the body. Acute renal failure is when the kidneys suddenly stop working and those waste products begin to build up in your body.
• HEART ATTACKS: A heart attack is when a portion of your heart becomes damaged or dies because of a lack of blood flow. A clot or other blockage in one of the ventricles can also cause this.
• HYPERKALEMIA: This condition refers to when there is too much potassium within the blood stream. The increased concentration of potassium within the blood stream leads to abnormal heart rhythm.
• HYPOTENSION: Another common side effect of this drug is hypotension. Hypotension is lower than usual blood pressure. Generally this would occur when too much of the drug is administered.
• RENAL COMPLICATIONS: Renal complications occur when the kidneys are not functioning properly. Commonly, the treatment for this is dialysis or kidney transplant depending on the severity.
• STROKES: This condition occurs when the brain is unable to get oxygen or blood for longer than a few seconds. This would normally occur if there was a blood clot in the brain or if the blood vessels are too narrow.
• SYNCOPE: Syncope is a form of fainting that is caused by the vagus nerve. The symptoms for this include lightheadedness, inability to speak, weakness, ringing in the ears or fuzzy/tunnel vision (among others). This is caused generally by blood pressure medications such as Tekturna.

Tekturna Side Effects

Several medical studies and reports have linked the drug Tekturna, manufactured by Novartis, to many serious side effects, including severe kidney problems and strokes.

Tekturna Kidney Problems

Studies have linked the use of Tekturna to the following kidney complications:

• Hyperkalemia
• Acute Renal Failure
• Renal Complications

Hyperkalemia: According to the Mayo Clinic, Hyperkalemia describes a potassium level in your blood that's higher than normal. Potassium is a nutrient that is critical to the function of nerve and muscle cells, including those in your heart. Hyperkalemia caused may result in toxically high levels of potassium, which can be fatal. Hyperkalemia is also difficult to diagnose, because it requires a blood test. The initial signs/symptoms include:

• Muscle weakness
• Heart palpitations
• Malaise (general discomfort/uneasiness)

Though these symptoms may seem benign, they may lead to sudden death due to an irregular heartbeat.

Acute Renal Failure/Acute Kidney Injury: Kidneys are responsible for removing waste and helping to balance the salt and water excretion in the body. Acute renal failure is when the kidneys suddenly stop working and those waste products begin to build up in your body. Signs of Tekturna kidney failure include:

• Lethargy
• Weakness
• Shortness of breath
• Generalized swelling

These Tekturna side effects may lead to congestive heart failure, coma, and even death.

Renal Complications: Other Renal complications may occur when the kidneys are not functioning properly. Commonly, the treatment for this is dialysis or kidney transplant depending on the severity.

Tekturna Strokes

The use of Tekturna has been linked to an increased risk for non-fatal strokes. Strokes can either be ischemic or hemorrhagic. An ischemic stroke is caused by a blood clot that forms in the body and is pumped into the brain. If the blood clot becomes trapped in a brain vessel, that part of the brain becomes deprived of oxygen and can die. Bleeding within the brain causes a hemorrhagic stroke. Stroke symptoms often appear suddenly, however, sometimes they may appear slowly and sporadically (off and on).
Warning signs include:

• Personality, mood, or emotional changes
• Confusion, loss of memory
• Clumsy motor coordination; includes difficulty walking, writing, balancing, etc.
• Blurry/Lost vision
• Slurred speech
• Changes in sensation
• Decreased alertness
• Headache
• Dizziness
• Incontinence
• Muscle weakness
• Tingling/numbness in the arm/leg/face – usually just on one side

 Other Tekturna Side Effects and Complications

Other Tekturna side effects include, but are not limited to:

• Heart Attacks
• Hypotension (low blood pressure)
• Syncope (form of fainting)

 If you have any of the above symptoms and believe that you suffered these because of your use of Tekturna, you may have a valid lawsuit against the manufacturer.

Tekturna Medical Studies

A recent medical study has linked the use of Tekturna to many, life-threatening side effects. These Tekturna side effects include, but are not limited to:

• Acute Renal Failure
• Renal Complications
• Kidney Problems
• Hypotension
• Hyperkalemia
• Heart Attacks
• Strokes

The medical study was actually cancelled by the manufacturer of Tekturna, Novartis, after the results showed a very high number of strokes and kidney problems. The Tekturna study involved over 8,000 patients with diabetes or kidney problems. It was meant to study the effects of Tekturna in patients with these conditions.

However, after an independent monitoring committee became alarmed with the extremely high rate of health risks and complications, Novartis shut down the study. Most of the complications became apparent after 18 to 24 months of using Tekturna.

Due to these findings and the study being shutdown, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued new warnings about the use of Tekturna and its side effects.

If you feel as though Tekturna has injured you, please contact an experienced defective drug attorney right away.

Tekturna Lawsuits

Due to the serious Tekturna side effects many patients have suffered, the manufacturer of Tekturna, Novartis, is on the brink of many lawsuits being filed against it. These side effects range from severe kidney problems and strokes, to heart complications.

A recent medical study has also given credibility and legitimacy to many Tekturna side effects claims. The study was actually shut down prematurely due to complications patients were experiencing from using Tekturna. Novartis stopped the study after an independent monitoring committee became very alarmed with the rate at which patients were experiencing kidney problems and strokes. Additionally, the FDA has now provided further warnings about the serious side effects resulting from the use of Tekturna.

Overall, the serious side effects associated with Tekturna are:

• Acute Renal Failure
• Hyperkalemia
• Strokes
• Hypotension
• Heart Attacks
• Syncope

If you have experienced any of the above side effects and believe that you suffered these because of your use of Tekturna, you may have a valid lawsuit against the manufacturer.

In order to prove that you have an injury that should be compensated for by the manufacturer, you must prove that the dangerous medication either was defective in the condition it was put on the market in, did not have adequate warnings, or that this form of the drug was otherwise defective in some way. The next thing that you have to prove is that the drug caused the side effect or disease that you were diagnosed with.

To prove this, many different experts and medical opinions are required. You will need the opinion of your physician and medical experts. There are experts that are brought in to prove that the drug is in fact defective. These lawsuits are very time-consuming and detailed but, if you have one, you deserve to be compensated for your injuries. Hiring an experienced Tekturna attorney can help you make important personal decisions regarding moving forward with your claim.

Tekturna About Manufacturer

Tekturna is manufactured by Novartis. Novartis can be traced back to 3 companies, beginning in 1758: Geigy, Ciba, and Sandoz. Geigy was started when, in 1758, Johann Rudolf Geigy-Gemuseus began trading in “materials, chemicals, dyes, and drugs of all kinds” in Switzerland. Almost 100 years later, his son acquired a site in that country and built a dyewood mill and dye extraction plant.

Ciba was started when Alexander Clavel took up the production of fuchsine in his silk dyeing factory in Switzerland and subsequently selling his dye to a new company, Bindschedler & Busch, which had commercial presence in various countries in Europe, Russia, and the U.S. Bindschedler & Busch became a joint-stock company and renamed the company as “Company for Chemical Industry Basel”, or Ciba for short. Sandoz was also started as a dye production company in Switzerland in 1886. In 1970, Ciba and Geigy merged and created Ciba-Geigy, Ltd. and Sandoz was on a separate path until 1996, when all three companies joined to form Novartis. Since then, Novartis have been adding more drugs to its pipeline and merging with different companies to become one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world.

Tekturna was created when researchers found that some of the older drugs increase the rennin production, which drives up blood pressure again. They found that Tekturna, with the generic name of Aliskiren, was the first drug that could inhibit rennin directly and thus lowers blood pressure. Tekturna was approved in U.S. and the EU as the first new type of blood pressure medicine in more than a decade, to treat hypertension. However, in December of 2011, Novartis had to halt a clinical trial of the drug after discovering the dangers it was causing to the participants in the clinical trials. Some of the dangers include increased incidence of non-fatal stroke, renal complications, hyperkalemia, and hypotension in patients with diabetes and renal impairment. Since the cancellation of this clinical study, the Tekturna lawsuits against Novartis have been increasing and Novartis’s sales numbers from Tekturna have been decreasing to a point where they are trying to sell the drug to another company or abandon it all together.

Tekturna and Novartis Corruption

In addition the problems Tekturna’s manufacturer, Novartis, has faced recently including having to urgently cancel medical studies of the drug due to serious side effects reports, decreasing sales, and mounting Tekturna lawsuits, the company faced pressure from investigators concerning its marketing techniques. In the last few years, Novartis has been subpoenaed by federal prosecutors in Kentucky about its sales practices, received demands for information regarding its marketing techniques from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in New York, and has been investigated by U.S. prosecutors in Texas regarding its exports and business dealings with Iran and other trade-restricted nations.

The multiple investigations of the Novartis regarding its questionable marketing and sales practices, including how it paid health-care providers, is not the first time manufacturer has been. In 2010, just before the current investigations began, the Tekturna manufacturer plead guilty to charges brought by the U.S. Department of Justice that the company was giving kickbacks to doctors prescribing the drug, Trileptal, for “off-label” and unapproved uses. Novartis was fined over $420 million.

Since the FDA has issued new warnings regarding serious Tekturna side effects after Novartis had to promptly cancel an internal study that a significant amount of severe to fatal side effect reports, the investigations into Novartis about how it marketed and sold Tekturna again forces the company to defend its actions. In light of its history of the company’s improper marketing, the new investigations are giving more support to the lawsuits claiming that the Novartis failed to properly warn them about the dangerous Tekturna side effects. Many of the claims by those who have suffered the Tekturna side effects claim that they were not informed that the drug has been linked to an increased risk of strokes, acute renal failures, heart attacks, hyperkalemia, and hypotension.

If you have suffered any side effects as a result of Tekturna use, you should consider contacting an experienced dangerous drug or Tekturna attorney who can help guide you through your options as you may be entitled to compensation for Novartis’ failure to warn consumers about the dangerous side effects.

PLEASE SPEAK WITH YOUR DOCTOR BEFORE DISCONTINUING USE OF TEKTURNA OR ANY OTHER PRESCRIPTION MEDICATION.

Contact the Law Offices of d’Oliveira & Associates, P.C.

If you believe that you or one of your loved ones have been injured by Tekturna, you may want to speak with a personal injury attorney regarding a potential claim. A defective drug lawyer in Rhode Island familiar with new developments in the investigation of Tekturna may be able to help you make important personal and legal decisions. d’Oliveira & Associates, P.C. is working with some of the leading lawyers in the United States and Canada who are handling these cases.

Please contact the law offices of d’Oliveira & Associates at 1-800-992-6878 or fill out a contact form for a free legal consultation.