Recently, a New Jersey judge ruled in favor of a patient who was required to have his colon removed due to side effects of taking the popular prescription acne medication known as Accutane, often called Isotretinoin. This victim was the first of many who have recently brought lawsuits against the makers of the drug and have forced legal and scientific investigations into Accutane and similar acne medications. Many of the victims of the severe side effects of Accutane have developed a disease known as Inflammatory Bowel Disease.
Symptoms of Inflammatory Bowel Disease
Inflammatory Bowel Disease is specific type of chronic disease that manifests itself as painful inflammation and swelling in the intestines. The disease also causes a rise in heat within the intestines making the victim extremely uncomfortable. Because Inflammatory Bowel Disease is a chronic illness, it lasts a long time and many patients never recover from the disease. For this reason, it is important for all people to protect themselves from the disease. Symptoms of Inflammatory Bowel Disease include abdominal or side cramps, diarrhea, urgent bowel movements, high fevers, loss of appetite, and anemia. All of these symptoms can be signs that the victim has been infected with Inflammatory Bowel Disease.
Complications of IBD
Other intestinal complications can arise due to Inflammatory Bowel Disease. These complications can be serious and include an intense bleeding from internal ulcers or sores, a rupturing of the bowel, obstruction within the intestines, and a risk of colon cancer. Because Accutane has been known to cause Inflammatory Bowel Disease, these risks are all associated with the use of Accutane as acne medication. Although it is not known exactly how great the risk is of being diagnosed with Inflammatory Bowel Disease by using Accutane, doctors are certain that numbers are significantly high when looking at the ratio between newly infected patients and the number of them who had taken the prescription drug Accutane.
Side Effects of Accutane
While Accutane is known as a popular and effective way of treating severe conditions of acne, it has also been proven to cause Inflammatory Bowel Disease in many people, along with other side effects. Some common other side effects include ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s Disease, depression, birth defects, allergies, and liver damage. If you or anyone you know has experienced these symptoms as a result of taking the prescription drug Accutane, it is important to contact a physician, as well as Personal injury law firm in Los Angeles.
Inflammatory Bowel Disease is very serious, and many of its causes are not yet known. However, there are extremely strong links between the acne prescription drug Accutane and Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Prevention is always the best form of protection, but due to the relatively recent discoveries of Accutane many people were unaware of the severe side effects.