A Florida-based law firm has filed a lawsuit against two major pharmaceutical companies, claiming that users of their weight loss drugs were not warned about the potential side effect of stomach paralysis.
Jaclyn Bjorklund, 44, of DeRidder, Louisiana, had been prescribed Novo Nordisk’s Ozempic and Eli Lilly and Co.’s Mounjaro by her doctor a year and a half ago, according to the court filing given to The New York Post.
Bjorklund has claimed that she has developed gastroparesis — a disorder delaying gastric emptying — as a result of these medications.
Gastroparesis can be caused by several things, including diabetes, hypothyroidism, or damage to the vagus nerve, according to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases. It can affect digestion and cause various symptoms ranging from upper abdominal pain to vomiting.
In Bjorklund’s case, the severity of her gastrointestinal symptoms brought her to the emergency room several times, according to the lawsuit.
Despite having stopped the medications this summer, she claimed to have vomited so violently as to expulse teeth just last weekend.
Bjorklund hasn’t been officially diagnosed with gastroparesis but seeks financial compensation from these drug manufacturers for her suffering.
“Ms. Bjorklund put her trust in Novo Nordisk and Eli Lilly and Company, and we believe that, as a result, she has gone through a hell that no one should have to endure,” Paul Pennock, a partner at Morgan & Morgan, told the Post.
Pennock went on to say that his client was not the only one suffering from health issues after taking the weight loss drugs.
“Ms. Bjorklund, as well as the over 500 clients across 45 states whose claims we continue to investigate, have suffered ongoing gastrointestinal problems that in many cases are severe, debilitating and disabling,” Pennock said.
CNN recently interviewed two other women now prone to severe vomiting and diagnosed with gastroparesis after taking Ozempic to lose weight.
“Even now, being off the medication for almost a year, I’m still having a lot of problems,” 42-year-old Brenda Allen from Dallas told CNN.
“I wish I never touched it,” said 37-year-old Joanie Knight from Louisiana, according to CNN. “This medicine made my life hell. So much hell. It has cost me money. It cost me a lot of stress; it cost me days and nights and trips with my family.”
Weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro have been viewed as game-changers in treating obesity, with those looking to shed weight racing to take them, as covered in The Dallas Express.
Initially developed in treating diabetes, they work by imitating GLP-1, a hormone normally released when food is consumed. As a result, the drugs slow the passage of food through the stomach and curb peoples’ appetites.
The U.S. currently faces rising rates of obesity among both adults and children, placing great strain on the public healthcare system.
For instance, heart disease — of which obesity is a major driver — is the leading cause of death in Dallas County, as The Dallas Express reported.
Some of the side effects reported during trials of these weight loss drugs included mild digestive issues such as nausea, diarrhea, and constipation, as well as an uptick in the prevalence of thyroid tumors.
When asked about the lawsuit by The New York Post, a representative from Novo Nordisk claimed to know nothing about it and stated that gastrointestinal side effects were “well-known side effects” of Ozempic.
Another representative from Eli Lilly made no mention of the lawsuit in a statement to the Post.
“Patient safety is Lilly’s top priority, and we actively engage in monitoring, evaluating and reporting safety information for all our medicines,” the statement read.