Were you diagnosed with retinal vasculitis or retinal vascular occlusion after being treated with Beovu for macular degeneration?

It may be overwhelming to think about filing a lawsuit against “Big Pharma.”  Drug manufacturers are profitable and powerful entities.  Lawsuits seeking compensation for harm caused by dangerous drugs are complex and challenging.  They are also necessary to provide a remedy for the injured and help keep American pharmaceuticals safe.  If you have been injured after taking a harmful drug product, it is your legal right to seek monetary compensation for your damages.  Doing so is also a way to hold drugmakers accountable if they reap huge profits by peddling dangerous medicines.  A skilled and experienced drug products liability lawyer can help you seek justice with a Beovu lawsuit if you have sustained retinal damage related to the use of the drug.

In this article:

• What is Beovu?
• What is Wet AMD?
• More About the Medication
• The Response from the FDA
• Beovu Lawsuits
• Beovu Lawsuits: Potential Settlement Value
• What to Do if You were Harmed by Beovu
• Why Should I File a Beovu Lawsuit?
• What To Do If You Are a Beovu User
• Injured by Beovu?  Talk With An Experienced Attorney

Beovu is a prescription drug that is relatively new to the market.  It received approval from the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) and hit American pharmacies in October 2019.  It is administered via injection and is used to treat wet age-related macular degeneration (wet AMD). 

Wet AMD is a relatively common yet devastating disease that is caused when additional blood vessels form in the macula and begin to leak.  The leaking vessels cause impaired vision.  The active ingredient in Beovu is called brolucizumab, and it blocks the growth hormone that causes the leaking of the macular blood vessels.  More than a million Americans suffer from wet AMD.  The condition is the leading cause of blindness. 

At present, hormone-blocking drugs such as Beovu are the only effective treatments for wet AMD.   

When it achieved FDA approval, Beovu was considered a significant breakthrough in treating wet AMD.  It required the patient to undergo far fewer injections than Eylea, the leading alternative medication.

However, a short nine months after the FDA’s approval of Beovu injections, reports were coming in that the drug caused certain patients to suffer a severe inflammatory condition called retinal vasculitis.  Those users who developed this retinal condition experienced significant vision loss and even blindness. The serious reactions were only recently disclosed as potential side effects of Beovu injections.

The reports of inflammatory reactions following Beovu’s release resulted in a drug safety review by the FDA. Novartis, the drug manufacturer, also launched its own internal safety review of the medication. The safety reviews appear to have confirmed that Beovu caused adverse reactions in some patients, resulting in retinal vascular occlusion and retinal vasculitis.

As a result of the study findings, the FDA approved a “black box” warning label for Beovu in June 2020.  A black box warning is the most serious level of a medication warning label. The new label disclosed the potential risk to Beovu users of retinal vasculitis and retinal vascular occlusion. 

At present, there has been neither a voluntary recall of the drug by the manufacturer or a mandatory recall by the FDA.  The use of the drug has been effectively halted, however, due to safety concerns.

Any patient who experienced a loss of vision after undergoing a Beovu injection before June 2020 has strong grounds on which to file a lawsuit against Beovu’s manufacturer, Novartis. Before the black box warning labels being required in June 2020, Novartis failed to warn of the risks associated with the use of Beovu.  Anyone who suffered vision loss or blindness following injection treatment with Beovu is urged to contact our office to discuss their legal rights.

It is anticipated that several Beovu lawsuits will be filed against Novartis in the near future.  Any patient who suffered vision impairment, blindness, or other adverse retinal conditions following Beovu treatment could have grounds for a lawsuit against Novartis. 

Here are some of the side effects that are potentially linked to the use of Beovu:

• Retinal inflammation
• Retinal vascular occlusion
• Retinal vasculitis
• Loss of vision

Lawsuits related to vision damage and blindness caused by Beovu are just now in the early investigation stages.  More information about the potential settlement value of such cases will become known as more evidence, and expert analyses are gathered.  Settlement values will partly be based on the extent of the damages caused by the use of the medication.  Some plaintiffs may have experienced partial vision loss, while others have suffered total blindness.  

Case value is often dependant on the total cost of past and future medical expenses, whether the plaintiff incurred a loss of income or a loss of earning capacity and the severity of the pain and suffering.  Anyone suffering from total blindness, for example, would likely receive a larger award for pain and suffering than someone who sustained a partial loss of vision.  

Some relevant questions related to a Beovu lawsuit:

• What is the severity of the eye condition that resulted from the use of Beovu?
• How does the vision loss affect the patient’s quality of life?
• Did the patient lose a job or sustain a loss of future earning capacity due to adverse side effects caused by the drug?

There are deadlines within which a lawsuit against a drug manufacturer must be filed.  The time limits partially depend on when it was discovered that the patient’s adverse eye condition was caused by the use of Beovu.  A medical history and thorough ophthalmological examination will be crucial pieces of evidence in the lawsuit.

If you used Beovu and suffered a retinal condition and/or vision loss, there are several reasons why it makes sense to investigate whether you have a case against the manufacturer of the hazardous drug.

You may be able to receive monetary compensation for your damages caused by the use of the medication – including medical expenses, loss of income, and pain and suffering.  If applicable, your spouse may also be entitled to compensation due to the adverse effect your medical condition had on the marriage.  

Filing a lawsuit may help protect future patients.  Lawsuits filed against dangerous drug manufacturers result in more comprehensive testing.  Better safety testing means that future patients may be less likely to be harmed by drug products.  Often, lawsuits result in new regulations being passed that are designed to protect consumers.

Watch the YouTube video.  The report below focuses on the big money drugs manufactured by Novartis.

If you have been treated with Beovu injections and are worried about the risk of eye damage, consult with your physician.  If you have noticed any new visual symptoms, you should undergo a thorough ophthalmological examination.  Even if you currently have no symptoms, an eye exam can be used as a baseline record of your retinal health, which can be used for comparison in the future.

A successful personal injury case against a drugmaker must first establish manufacturer negligence.  If you were treated with Beovu before June 2020 and subsequently suffered from retinal vasculitis and/or retinal vascular occlusion, call our office for a no-obligation consultation.

“Big Pharma” corporations reap huge profits and will spare no expense to defend lawsuits filed against them.  If you or a loved one has developed retinal damage after receiving Beovu injections, you must retain a lawyer who has extensive experience taking on drug manufacturers.

I’m Ed Smith, a Sacramento Drug Products Liability Attorney. If you have received a diagnosis of retinal damage following Beovu treatments, please call our office to speak with a skilled injury lawyer.  Our local phone number is 916.921.6400, and from outside the area, we can be contacted via our toll-free line: 800.404.5400.  We look forward to speaking with you and offering compassionate, free, and friendly advice.  

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Image by Bruno Henrique from Pixabay

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