Valium Side Effects and
Lawsuit Information

Numerous Valium lawsuits have been filed, however none have been successful to date. The drug was supposed to calm people down, which it did, however one Valium side effect was addiction.

History of Valium

Valium (diazepam) is a member of the drug class benzodiazepines. Approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 1963 it became the drug of choice to treat "free floating anxiety" and was dubbed "Mother's Little Helper."

Valium (Latin for 'be strong and well') is also used for insomnia, seizures, alcohol withdrawal and muscle spasms. Doctors use it prior to endoscopies to reduce tension, and in some surgeries to induce amnesia. It's considered to be one the "THE" most essential drugs to have on hand in any basic health care system. Back in 1963 not many Valium side effects were known.

First synthesized by Dr. Leo Sternbach (who discovered Librium) of Roche Labs, Valium ranks as one of the most frequently prescribed drugs since its launch. It has an amazing list of conditions it's approved for and many off-label uses ranging from panic attacks to vertigo and insomnia to multiple sclerosis. The state of California offers it to prisoners on death row prior to lethal injection.

Valium is in virtually every country of the world and is marketed under 19 different trade names. From 1969 to 1982, Diazepam sold billions of tablets with peak sales around 2.3 billion in 1978.

Roughly ten years later media reports started mentioning Valium abuse. Family doctors (not mental health professionals) were handing out scripts for this drug like candy to women over 30 trying to cope with normal everyday stresses. Valium was so appealing people didn't want to think it was addictive. No one had yet filed a lawsuit citing Valium side effects as the cause of action.

Valium started turning up as an illegal street drug. It became a common reference in the English language as 'Executive Excedrin.' Elvis Presley died in 1977 with Valium in his system.

It wasn't until 1975 that reports of addiction and withdrawal symptoms started surfacing. Even in the face of those reports the drug was thought to be safe. Roche was accused of failing to adequately warn people about the risk of dependency.

By 1979 the best selling book "I'm Dancing as Fast as I Can" hit the market and woke people up to the addiction potential of Valium. Rebound insomnia, even with light Valium use, started rearing its head. Doctors got addicted to the free drug samples sent them. By now there were patients seriously suffering from Valium side effects such as addiction.

In 1980 the FDA decided to do something about Valium's addictive nature and persuaded Roche to add a statement to their label that "anxiety or tension associated with the stress of everyday life usually does not require treatment with an anxiolytic drug."

This may have done the trick, but another wrinkle cropped up - a report alleging a link between Valium use and the rapid growth of cancer cells. The writing was on the wall and a decline in the drug's popularity was beginning.

Valium Side Effects & Other Concerns

Valium is a schedule IV controlled psycholeptic, which in ordinary English means it has the potential to be addictive. The most common side effects include addiction, sleepiness, depression, impaired balance/coordination, dizziness, impaired motor functions, impaired learning abilities, suppression of REM sleep, heart beats faster than 100 beats per minute and a rare form of amnesia.

There are other side effects. However they are classified as being relatively rare and may include nervousness, fluctuation in libido, nausea, incontinence, headaches, constipation, double vision, difficulty speaking, abnormally low blood pressure, rash, insomnia, muscle cramps and rage/violence.

Valium should not be mixed with antidepressants, barbiturates, narcotics, phenothiazines, alcohol or muscle relaxants. If you suffer from severe sleep apnea and are taking Valium you may suffer respiratory arrest and death.

Valium may cause some extremely serious side effects in some people. These may include confusion, decreased inhibitions, suicidal thoughts, agitation, hyperactivity, hallucinations, fainting, muscle twitching, fever, chills, jaundice and urinating less than usual or not at all. These side effects are serious enough to file a Valium lawsuit.

Lawsuits of note against drug giant Roche Laboratories have been and are for:

* Teva - patent infringement for Boniva

* IGEN - breach of licensing agreement in use of ORIGEN biological detection equipment

* Amgen - patent infringement for anemia medicine Mircera

* Vitamin Price Fixing - led worldwide conspiracy of manufacturers to rig prices in bulk vitamin market for most of the 1990s

* Cellcept - causes life threatening progressive nutritional leukoencephalopathy, a slow virus infection

* Amgen - patent infringement for Epogen for kidney failure patients and those on dialysis

* Boniva - bone metabolism regulator that cause osteonecrosis

Valium Lawsuits

There have been lawsuits filed against Roche for Valium side effects, however several have been thrown out of court. One in particular was booted on a statute of limitation technicality - which isn't to say the plaintiff would not have been successful (but for the technicality).

The plaintiff argued that his illness was linked to Valium side effects and that since it's a narcotic it triggered his mental illness. The judge ruled the case could not be heard as over 3 years had elapsed after the damage had been caused

To date there have not been any successful Valium lawsuits against Roche over Valium side effects.

If you suspect you may be addicted to Valium or have experienced any of the other Valium side effects mentioned in this article, contact a lawyer to discuss the possibility of filing a Valium lawsuit.




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