Crestor® Lawyer

The U.S. Consumer group Public Citizen has submitted a petition to the FDA recommending that Crestor® be removed from the pharmaceutical marketplace. This comes after twenty-nine patients who had taken AstraZeneca Plc's drug Crestor® developed kidney damage. The rate of reported kidney problems is approximately 75 times higher than with competing drugs within the same class of statins.

Crestor® (rosuvastatin calcium) is a cholesterol reducing drug part of a class of pharmaceuticals called "statins." Statins reduce cholesterol by reducing a specific enzyme responsible for the synthesis of Cholesterol in the body.

Statins have been associated with rare occurrences of Rhabdomyolysis, but significantly more occurrences have been reported that are associated with the use of Crestor®. 65 cases of Rhabdomyolysis have been reported to the FDA so far, which is similar to the rate associated with Baycol®.

Rhabdomyolysis is caused by an adverse reaction involving the destruction of muscle tissue that can lead to kidney failure or even death. Patients taking Crestor® have suffered from some of the following side effects:

Muscle Pain
Muscle Inflammation
Muscle Soreness
Muscle Tenderness
Malaise
Fever
Dark Urine
Nausea
Vomiting

These side-effects, most prevalent in patients taking the 40 mg dose of Crestor®, can be a sign of the onset of Rhabdomyolysis or kidney failure. The FDA labeling recommends urinalysis testing for patients taking the 40 mg dose of Crestor® to look for persistent proteinuria. Proteinuria, an elevation of protein in the urine, can be a possible sign of serious kidney problems, especially if associated with blood in the urine.

The FDA Endrocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee opposed the approval of Crestor® because of its unique kidney toxicity. Because of the safety concerns, the maximum dose strength was reduced from 80 mg to 40 mg.

According to WorstPills.org, AstraZeneca attempted to "spin" the drug's potential for causing elevated protein levels in the urine by claiming that it was due to a previously unobserved effect of the statin family of drugs. However, the research submitted by AstraZeneca to the FDA did not show a similar degree of urine protein elevation with any of the other statins.

If you believe that you or a relative were injured by taking Crestor® please use the form below to contact our law firm.

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