Seroquel Lawsuits Abound, But Courts Not Impressed So Far

Seroquel (quetiapine fumarate) is an antipsychotic medication used in the treatment of bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, as well as for off-label conditions such as sleep problems. As we noted in our Seroquel Medication Profile, using Seroquel (along with other atypical antipsychotics) can lead to an increase in blood sugar that may develop into diabetes. There has been a warning to this effect on the patient prescribing information for this medication going back at least till 2004 (the oldest label available on the internet). Patients with diabetes or with risk factors for diabetes are warned to have fasting blood glucose testing before starting to take Seroquel, and then have the testing repeated periodically.

There are several other warnings on the full label, including the risk of Tardive Dyskinesia and Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome.

Recently a large number of personal and class action lawsuits have been filed against manufacturer AstraZeneca claiming that Seroquel caused diabetes or another of the listed conditions and that the plaintiff patients were not adequately warned. Lawyers' websites are actively recruiting people to file suit or join in a class action. In Florida, two class action suits were dismissed earlier this year because the plaintiffs "had failed to establish triable issues regarding a specific causal link between Seroquel and diabetes"; in Delaware last month, a judge ruled in favor of a defense request for summary judgment after AstraZeneca's attorneys argued that the plaintiff "had several risk factors for diabetes before taking Seroquel, including obesity, race, a family history of diabetes, and a history of hypertension and cigarette smoking," and thus, there was not enough basis to prove that Seroquel caused her diabetes (Forbes.com).

Some legal experts question whether there is any future for the thousands of Seroquel lawsuits yet to make it to court. Others say it will be impossible for all the suits to be dismissed, and that sooner or later AstraZeneca will begin to lose suits or have to make settlements. Certainly the emails between AstraZeneca employees aren't going to help their case: there is one that praised an employee for minimizing the negativity of a "cursed" study, and another that said three studies had been "buried" (NY Times).

I have taken Seroquel in both high doses and low doses at times during the past several years. I participated in a Seroquel clinical trial. I gained a lot of weight on it, and my blood glucose is now high enough that I am in treatment for a pre-diabetic condition." But I knew all this was possible, and I, like the plaintiff above, have risk factors for diabetes including a family history and smoking. Also, Seroquel isn't the only psych med that made me gain weight (a total of 100 pounds when I was at my highest point). So I won't be jumping into the lawsuit bandwagon. Each of us must make his or her own decision - I've made mine.

Sources:
Forbes.com: AstraZeneca Wins Judgment in Seroquel Lawsuit
AstraZeneca: Seroquel Facts: Summary of warnings, link to full prescribing information
New York Times: AstraZeneca E-Mail Released in Seroquel Lawsuit