Accutane Causing Crohn's Disease, Ulcerative Colitis and Inflammatory Bowel Disease
The attorneys at Marcus & Mack, who have represented injured people involving defective drugs and products, is now evaluating cases, at no cost, where people have taken the drug Accutane and have developed several side effects including Crohn's Disease, Ulcerative Colitis and Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Call 866-527-2161(Toll Free) or email us for a no-cost evaluation with a dangerous drug attorney.
What is Accutane?
Accutane is an oral drug taken for severe forms of acne produced by Hoffman-La Roche Inc. It was first developed as a chemotherapy treatment for certain types of cancer; however, the manufacturer discovered it was also effective in curing severe acne. Hoffman-La Roche began marketing Accutane in 1982 to clients with severe acne problems, but due to an aggressive marketing campaign, the medicine was then prescribed for common forms of acne.
Why is Accutane dangerous?
Over the past few decades, there have been many cases linking Accutane to serious birth defects and possible suicides. Recently, evidence has surfaced that since 1984 Hoffman-La Roche also knew that Accutane was potentially linked to other serious side effects as well such as: Crohn's disease, ulcerative colitis, and inflammatory bowel disease. In June of 2009, Roche informed the FDA that it Accutane was being recalled.
Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Inflammatory Bowel Disease refers to two chronic diseases that cause inflammation of the intestines: ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease. These disease do have many similarities, however there are some important differences between them. Inflammatory bowel disease is also often confused with irritable bowel syndrome when the two are not related.
Ulcerative Colitis
Ulcerative colitis is an inflammatory disease of the large intestines or colon. In ulcerative colitis, the inner lining of the intestine become inflamed (red and swollen) and develops ulcers (open, painful wounds). Ulcerative colitis is often the severe in the rectal area, which can cause frequent diarrhea. Mucus and blood often appear in the stool if the lining of the colon is damaged.
Crohn's Disease
Crohn's disease most commonly affects the last part of the small intestine and parts of the large intestine, but is not limited to these areas. Crohn's disease causes inflammation that extends much deeper into the layers of the intestinal wall and generally tends to involve the entire bowel wall.
Signs and Symptoms of Ulcerative Colitis and Crohn's Disease
The most common symptoms for ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease are diarrhea and abdominal pain. Diarrhea can range from mild to severe (as many as 20 times per day). Extreme diarrhea can lead to dehydration, rapid heartbeat, and a drop in blood pressure. Continued loss of blood in the stool can then lead to anemia.
Those with irritable bowel syndrome may also be constipated. With Crohn's disease, this can happen due to partial obstruction of the intestines. With ulcerative colitis, constipation may be a symptom of inflammation of the rectum.
The loss of fluid and nutrients from diarrhea and chronic inflammation can cause fever, fatigue, weight loss and malnutrition. Pain is usually from the abdominal cramping, caused by irritation of the nerves and muscles that control intestinal contractions.
Treatment
Drug treatment is the most effective method for curing symptoms of ulcerative colitis and Crohn's disease. The doctor may prescribe anti-inflammatory drugs to decrease inflammation and/or immunosuppressive agents.
If symptoms do not respond to these drugs, doctors will then consider surgery; however, the surgeries for these two diseases differ.
With Crohn's disease, doctors make every effort to avoid surgery due to the recurring nature of the disease. Surgical treatment may also cause further complications such as short bowel syndrome.
With ulcerative colitis, removal of the colon may be necessary along with an ileoanal anastomosis. This procedure involves the surgeon forms a pouch from the small bowel to collect stool in the pelvis. This allows the stool to pass through the anus.
