Acne Drug Maker on Trial in Midwest
The first trial against the maker of acne drug Accutane opens today in Madison County, Ill., the National Law Journal reports.
Jason Christopher Peipert claims Accutane caused him to develop Crohn’s disease, an inflammatory bowel disease. He is also suing his physician. Piepert is one of nearly 500 plaintiffs who say Accutane causes gastrointestinal disease, according to the Los Angeles Times, which profiled a Tennessee plaintiff whose case is expected to go to trial this summer. Peipert’s Illinois case is the first involving accusations of colon problems to go to trial against Nutley, N.J.-based pharmaceutical company Hoffman-La Roche Inc. The second case will start April 30 in Atlantic City, N.J.
The plaintiffs’ lawyers say they will introduce documents showing that the company knew the drug caused colon problems and that they were more common than other side effects, the newspaper reports.
