Seroquel Lawyers Continue to Review New Lawsuits as First Trials Near

Austin Kirk

By Austin Kirk
Posted September 19, 2008

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Since early 2006, the Seroquel lawyers at Saiontz & Kirk, P.A. have been representing clients who developed diabetes or pancreatitis after using the antipsychotic medication. The first trials are scheduled for early next year of Seroquel lawsuits filed in the federal MDL, yet our attorneys continue to be contacted by individuals who have not yet reviewed their potential legal rights.

Seroquel has been used by over 19 million people and generates annual sales of over $3 billion worldwide for AstraZeneca. Although the drug maker was aware of the side effects of Seroquel, which could lead to severe weight gain, diabetes, hyperglycemia and pancreatitis, they failed to provide adequate warnings for users and the medical community.

Seroquel is only approved to treat symptoms of psychotic conditions like schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, yet it has been widely promoted and prescribed off-label to millions of people. Some estimates suggest that as many as 70% of all Seroquel prescriptions have been off-label.

According to an August 28, 2008 court filing by lawyers for AstraZeneca, the Seroquel litigation now includes 13,339 people who have served a lawsuit on the pharmaceutical company. In addition, at the time of the filing, AstraZeneca was aware of 40 new lawsuits which had been filed by Seroquel users, but not yet served on the company. Our lawyers suspect that there are still thousands of people who may have potential cases who have not contact an attorney.

All federal Seroquel cases have been consolidated in an MDL or Multidistrict Litigation that has been assigned to Judge Anne Conway in the U.S. District Court of Florida, Orlando Division. Twelve Seroquel lawsuits filed directly in Florida have been designated for the “Initial Trial Pool,” and the current case management order issued in January indicates that the court anticipates the first Seroquel trials will start in February 2009.

SEROQUEL ATTORNEYS

Although the Seroquel litigation has been pending for some time, our attorneys are continuing to review new cases for individuals diagnosed with diabetes or pancreatitis. As the first trials approach next year, AstraZeneca could decide to negotiate Seroquel settlements instead of letting a jury decide the cases. Therefore, if you, a friend or family member believe you may have a potential case, act now to request a free consultation and claim evaluation.

10 Comments • Add Your Comments

  • Phyllis says:

    I was given seroquel for auditory hallucinations and visual hallucinations. I told the P.A. that I had taken risperdyl and thorazine with tardive diskynesia. And I had at first felt great with them but because of side effects had to stop it. I told her I was treated effectively with Benedryl. The PA went ahead and Rx the Seroquel with the Benadry. At first for several weeks it seemed ok, and my moods improved and less hallucinations. But as I used it longer I began to feel twitches, and difficulty swallowing. I also have profound deafness and tinnitus and some of the hallucinations are a result of my hearing loss. So the Benadryl was not working effectively any more. At the next appointment I was out of town, so I missed seeing her. I rescheduled. She was out of the office, so I had to see the M.D. He was very short with me as I had admitted to using Cocaine once. He told me to stop all medications, take two Depakote 500 mg at night and 10 mg Clonipine. That was all the instructions he gave me. I asumed he meant to stop only the psych drugs and not my drugs given to me by my M.D. general practitioner who treats me for my pain symptoms from IC and fibromyalgia and arthritis as well as other chronic illnesses. I live alone and have no one close to help me. As I had no real instructions I found myself unable to drive. Unable to get out of bed or clean my house. I couldn’t take care of myself or my dog. I also became very angry, suicidal. I did not want to go into the Dr office again as I was so angry. I was trying to follow the instructions. I sent emails and posted on my space many things that lead my family to realize that I was in trouble and needed help even if I did not realize it. I had feelings in my head like there were shocks in the back near my brain stem. I had this before when I stopped taking Prozac and knew it was probably from stopping the Cymbalta. I was so angry, so confused and so weak and unable to do anything to help myself. Thankfully my family recognized I was in trouble and got me to them where I was able to see another Dr and got back on track. I think his treatment was malpractice. And the supervision of his P.A. was very poorly done.

    Posted on September 27, 2008 at 12:13 am

  • Phyllis says:

    I think it will take a long time for me to get back to where I was. I am very ill psychologically and physically. I messed up my finances, was very angry and almost did irrepairable financial damages and certainly have done some social damages that may not be repaired for some time.

    Posted on September 27, 2008 at 12:27 am

  • amanda says:

    I would like to comment on this drug Seroquel that when I was taking this drug it made me have bad hallucinations and my sleeping patterns had changed from bad to worse.I was literaly so confused I did not know half the time I was even in this world.I was walking around like a zombie.My mood swings started to become worse than they already was.I was becoming suicidal, again and tried to hurt myself and had to be hospitalized, then I was put in psychiatric hospital for awhile.After, I was taken off this drug by my doctor and my problems did not end just yet, I got where I was having trouble swallowing,mood swings got worse than ever ,I went on a spending spree that escalated into me having over $14,000 in unnecasary debt accmulated on me besides my marriage and family relationships was falling apart on me and all the way around me and I was on the brink of suicide,again.I come very close to losing myself and everyone (my loved ones) around me as well as my home and everything I had.I did whind up having to file Bankruptcy to keep from losing everything.I whind up finding a doctor and therapist who could help me get back on the right track.Still, suffering from it but, taking one day at a time.Also, I would like to add that it did cause me other health problems and that is Type2 Diabetes and I have nerve damage in my hands and feet,now as well as other complications,too.This drug has caused me alot of problems I did not need considering the condition I am in with my mental illness has not gotton much better and my life is still un-balance and hanging in the balance right, now………

    Posted on October 7, 2008 at 12:58 am

  • Angela says:

    I have taken Seroqule for awhile and at first, except for the constant sedation, I was fine until the side effects were unbearable. At first, I gained alot of weight even though I eat like a bird. I was not told at first I would gain weight. This did not help in my depression. It was prescribed to me due to my hallucinations/hearing things that weren’t there. I am BIPOLAR, misdiagnosed for years. I had gone from a small dose to a larger dose making everything worse. Then, I took myself off and that caused a bigger problem. This drug is suppose to be a mood-stablizer yet I felt that my mood was worse when I was on it. Dry mouth, sedation, drowsiness,weight gain, and increased suicidal thoughts and I was very argumentitive. Now I have sleep apnea from the excessive weigh gain. Frankly, I am scared to take any BIPOLAR related drugs. I feels as though there is nothing out there that can help me. I am scared.

    Posted on October 7, 2008 at 8:10 am

  • Robert H says:

    This stuff messed me up so bad. I was at the hospital on Risperdal prescribed by Dr. Martino- which actually was working for me but then when I returned they gave another doctor, Dr. Greenfield. He prescribed Seroquel to treat my major depression and the stuff literally drove me insane. I felt like I had drank 12 beers at once with a funnel and experienced major nausea. It messed my mind up so bad that I jumped the 18 ft fence at the hospital because they were forcing me to take it and I knew it was messing me up. This was the reasoning why Columbia Hospital changed their fence.

    Seroquel messed up my thought patterns and gave me involuntary twitches. After I jumped the fence, about 4 hrs after watching police and dogs patrol the area and once they left, I tried to go back and was rushed by 3 security guards that tried to demobilize me as I backed up into the alligator infested canal and nearly drowned as I hyperventilated and treaded water for over 30 minutes screaming at the top of my lungs. The only person who brought me back was a black lady I knew to be nice- who was screaming louder than I and inticing me to come back to clean up and dry off and to get into a warm bed. I came back to my senses- and went back to the hospital. Dr. Greenfield- the Dr. that prescribed the seroquel, released me the night that I escaped from the hospital on the meds. This was at Columbia Hospital in west palm beach at 3 am in the morning.

    Posted on October 20, 2008 at 10:17 pm

  • CHAR says:

    I HAVE BEEN DELIBERATELY MISDIAGNOSED AS HAVING MAJOR DEPRESSION WITH PYCHOSIS. THIS WAS ENCOUNTERED BECAUSE IT IS ALLEGED THAT THE DOCTOR AND TEAM SOUGHT TO FRAUDULENTLY CONCEAL HOUSING STRESSORS AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS THAT I PRESENTED TO A PARTIAL HOSPITALIZATION PROGRAM. TO ALSO JUSTIFY PLACING ME ON 300 MG OF SEROQUELM MY RECORDS HAVE BEEN FILLED WITH ERRONEOUS INFORMATION, FALSE ACCUSATIONS, ETC. THE DOCTOR NEVER SHARED MY ALLEGED AND ERRONEOUS DIAGNOSIS WITH ME, BUT PLACED ME ON SEROQUEL AND GAVE ME AN ULTIMATUM TO TAKE THE DRUG AT THE PROGRAM OR ELSE… THERE IS DOCUMENTED PROOF OF LEAKS OF MY PROTECTED HEALTHCARE INFO AND BREACHES OF TRUST. IT IS ALLEGED THAT THE TREATMENT TEAM AND PSYCHIATRIC CASE MANAGERS SOUGHT TO PROTECT CORPORATE INTEREST, ETC.

    I HAVE DOCUMENTED PROOF TO SUBSTANTIATE THAT THE HOUSING STRESSORS AND ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS WERE OF MERIT, DESPITE THE INTENTIONAL MISREPRESENTATION OF MY MENTAL STATUS ETC. BY PSYCH. CARE PROVIDERS THAT GAVE ME NO COMFORT, CARE, AND PRIVACY.

    Posted on January 24, 2009 at 1:28 pm

  • Tawana says:

    I was placed on Seroquel for depression. I gained a lot of weight in a short period of time and couldn’t understand what was going on. My doctor never told me that Seroquel was an anti-psychotic and not FDA approved for depression. I was mourning the death of an infant. I had some complications I couldn’t understand in terms of moods after the use of the medicine. I chalked it up as PMS at a late age. I had a tubal reversal in 2004, six months after starting the medicine. I noticed my incision was not closing off and went to the hospital that performed the reversal. They checked it for infection and sent me home. I started my master’s courses in divinity and found myself feeling like I was going to pass out a couple of weeks later. I woke up one morning and found it difficult to see the numbers on the VCR and felt uneasy. I packed my daughter up and went back to the hospital thinking infection had set in. Once at the hospital the doctor did labs and came back and asked me if I was a diabetic. I told him no but to my surprise he came back and told me my sugar was 715 and that I was in hyperglycemia. I was immediately admitted to the hospital and just cried. Other than female problems with cysts and bladder infections I was pretty healthy. The doctor that saw me once I was admitted asked me about medications and when I got to Seroquel he informed me on the FDA warning and immediately took me off the drug. He documented that he felt I was diabetic secondary to Seroquel because there was no immediate family history. Now because I am African-American the remarks get made that in generations past someone must have had diabetes. I have gone back six generations and NO ONE in my family has this disease. Five years later I have had diabetes complications and never got to have that baby that I paid for a tubal reversal for. They say medically it would be dangerous to both the baby and I. I haven’t finished my masters yet because I have gotten sick many times. You would think my case would have been one for initial trial but guess Astra Zeneca is picking the weakeast cases to play with initially.

    Posted on February 18, 2009 at 11:02 pm

  • sarah says:

    i was perscribed Seroquel for bipolar disorder. as a result from this medication. iI now suffer from Type 2 dietbetices. and that has caused other health issues such as tingles in both my feet.

    Posted on August 20, 2012 at 5:05 pm

  • Angie says:

    I. Have. Been. On seroquel. For. Over. 25. Years and. Now I’m. Having. So. Many problems health. Wise, at. Times. I. Don’t. Event want. To. Wake. Up insomnia sleep. Problems cronic, bipolar , anxiety, panic , adrenaline , social. Anxiety , rapid. Heart beat, sometimes. I. Can’t. Breath. And. I’m. Gasping. For. Air. Circalation. Issues. Arithmea. Rapid. Heart. Beat, lack. Of. Oxogen, depression, vision. Problems. Gastrointestinal. Problems, savere. Constipation. Bloating savere, savere. Pain..

    Posted on February 6, 2019 at 11:45 pm

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