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    <title>Kansas City Personal Injury Lawyer</title>
    <description>Kansas city personal injury attorneys Langdon &amp; Emison offer news and opinions on Kansas City and national legal topics such as car and truck accidents, defective and dangerous products, medical malpractice, worksite injuries and wrongful death.</description>
    <link>http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/</link>
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    <item>
      <title>Yaz/Yasmin/Ocella Side Effects: How Does Yaz Cause A Stroke?</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;Yaz, Yasmin and Ocella are popular contraceptives, but have been linked to serious side effects.  These drugs are marketed under different names, but are chemically identical.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;These birth control pills have been very popular, particularly among young women.  The giant drug companies that make these drugs has marketed them to young women as having an added benefit of preventing acne and reducing symptoms of PMS.  However, Yaz/Yasmin/Ocella have &lt;a href="http://www.yazhealthrisk.com/"&gt;serious health risks&lt;/a&gt; and have been linked to deadly side effects including heart attack and stroke. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Women who have taken these birth control pills need to be fully aware of risks and know the warning signs to look out for.  Parents need to make sure they understand all of the risks and dangers before letting their daughters take these particular birth control pills.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;u&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Why does Yaz/Yasmin/Ocella cause stroke?&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The problems lies with the key chemical ingredient in these drugs: &lt;strong&gt;&lt;em&gt;Drospirenone&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;.  Yaz/Yasmin/Ocella combine estrogen with a synthetic progestin called Drospirenone.  &lt;em&gt;&lt;u&gt;No other contraceptive&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/em&gt; (birth control pill) contains Drospirenone.  The combination of chemicals and hormones in Yaz/Yasmin/Ocella has been reported to increase the risk of blood clots by more than 600%&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;img alt="Side_effects-drosperinone" width="549" height="608" src="http://www.yazhealthrisk.com/images/side_effects-drosperinone.jpg?1258410645" /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Your body needs to clot blood -- and this is a normal function.  Blood clotting stops the flow of blood from cuts and creates scabs to stop the bleeding.  Inside your body, this process repairs damage to the skin, blood vessels and other body tissues.  However, the chemical combinations in Yaz, Yasmin and Ocella can cause &lt;u&gt;&lt;em&gt;abnormal&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/u&gt; blood clotting.  This results in blood clotting when it is unnecessary and inside the blood vessel, vein or artery.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;These abnormal blood clots can break away from the blood vessel on which they formed.  These clots then travel through the blood stream.  If the clots cause a blockage near the heart, it can prevent blood flow from reaching the heart and &lt;a href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/fda-and-prescription-drugs/yaz-side-effects-how-does-yaz-cause-a-heart-attack.aspx?googleid=274706"&gt;resulting in a heart attack&lt;/a&gt;. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;It is also possible for the blood clot to flow through the blood stream to the brain.  As it flows, the blood vessels become increasingly smaller and eventually the clot creates a blockage.  When the clot forms a blockage in the brain, the result is a stroke.  Studies have shown Yaz/Yasmin/Ocella to cause an abnormal number of strokes -- even in young women.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;You should &lt;a href="http://www.yazhealthrisk.com/"&gt;learn more about Yaz/Yasmin/Ocella side effects&lt;/a&gt; and what you can do if you or a loved one has taken these birth control pills.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;a href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/fda-and-prescription-drugs/yazyasminocella-side-effects-how-does-yaz-cause-a-stroke.aspx?googleid=274760"&gt;Originally posted&lt;/a&gt; at &lt;a href="http://www.InjuryBoard.com"&gt;InjuryBoard&lt;/a&gt; by &lt;a href="http://www.injuryboard.com/Brett-Emison/"&gt;Brett Emison&lt;/a&gt;</description>
      <link>http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/fda-and-prescription-drugs/yazyasminocella-side-effects-how-does-yaz-cause-a-stroke.aspx?googleid=274760</link>
      <source url="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/">Kansas City Personal Injury Lawyer</source>
      <category>FDA &amp; Prescription Drugs</category>
      <category>Yaz</category>
      <category> Yasmin</category>
      <category> Ocella</category>
      <category> side effect</category>
      <category> drospirenone</category>
      <category> heart attack</category>
      <category> stroke</category>
      <category> pulmonary embolism</category>
      <category> PE</category>
      <category> deep vein thrombosis</category>
      <category> DVT</category>
      <category> young women</category>
      <category> lawyer</category>
      <category> attorney</category>
      <category> multi-district litigation</category>
      <category> MDL</category>
      <category> class action</category>
      <dc:creator>Brett Emison</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Fri, 20 Nov 2009 18:14:44 GMT</pubDate>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Tort Reform: Insurance Lobbyists Want To Take Away Your Rights</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;According to &lt;a href="http://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/60-second-science/post.cfm?id=deaths-from-avoidable-medical-error-2009-08-10"&gt;Scientific American&lt;/a&gt;, &lt;em&gt;&lt;u&gt;preventable&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/em&gt; medical mistakes kill 200,000 American &lt;em&gt;&lt;u&gt;each year&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/em&gt;. Despite all those deaths, insurance company lobbyists want you to give up your right to a jury trial if one of these accidents happens to you or your family member.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The U.S. Constitution and State Constitutions grant you the right to a trial by jury.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Article III, Section 2: Trial by Jury, Original Jurisdiction, Jury Trials&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;7th Amendment: Trial by Jury in Civil Cases&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;In Suits at common law. . ., the right of trial by jury &lt;u&gt;&lt;em&gt;shall be preserved&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/u&gt;. . . .&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Why would anyone give up his or her constitutional right to a trial by a jury of peers?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Why would we give up a fundamental constitutional right in order to protect negligence that kills 200,000 people per year? Do insurance lobbyists have us so scared that we would give up a fundamental right deemed so important that it was included in the original Bill of Rights?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;What are we really scared of? Some facts from &lt;a href="http://www.allbusiness.com/health-care/medical-practice-internal-medicine/13341141-1.html"&gt;allbusiness.com&lt;/a&gt;:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;
    &lt;li&gt;
    &lt;p&gt;Average liability premiums across internists, general surgeons and OB/GYNs are nearly identical for states with or without caps on medical malpractice damages&lt;/p&gt;
    &lt;/li&gt;
    &lt;li&gt;
    &lt;p&gt;Average liability premiums for OB/GYNs are nearly identical for states with or without caps&lt;/p&gt;
    &lt;/li&gt;
    &lt;li&gt;
    &lt;p&gt;Average liability premiums for general surgeons are nearly 10% higher in states &lt;em&gt;&lt;u&gt;with&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/em&gt; caps&lt;/p&gt;
    &lt;/li&gt;
    &lt;li&gt;
    &lt;p&gt;Average liability premiums for internal medicine are nearly 10% higher in states &lt;em&gt;&lt;u&gt;with&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/em&gt; caps&lt;/p&gt;
    &lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;quot;Malpractice insurers promised tort law changes would lower premiums, yet it has not happened.&amp;quot;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;If caps on damages and keeping valid lawsuits out of court do not reduce malpractice rates for doctors or the premiums that you and I pay for health insurance, what does it do? According to the &lt;a href="http://www.columbiatribune.com/news/2009/oct/04/fleeing-physicians/"&gt;Columbia Tribune&lt;/a&gt; and &lt;a href="http://kansascity.bizjournals.com/kansascity/stories/2009/08/17/daily1.html"&gt;Kansas City Business Journal&lt;/a&gt;, it lines the pockets of insurance companies.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Family health care premiums for employer-provided insurance in Missouri will have risen an estimated 3.6 times faster than workers' earning from 2000 through 2009, according to a Families USA report.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Family health insurance premiums for employer-provided coverage will have risen 82.5 percent in the period, whereas median earnings have risen 22.8 percent. . . .&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;***&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Families USA said that higher insurance premiums have been coupled with &amp;quot;thinner&amp;quot; coverage and higher deductibles, copayments and co-insurance.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Pollack blamed rising premiums on &amp;quot;wasteful heath care spending, an almost-unregulated insurance market, a dramatic drop in competition in the insurance market and costs shifted from the uninsured to the insured, termed a 'hidden health tax.'&amp;quot;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;In Missouri, those with employer-provided health care are paying more money for less coverage. . . even though Missouri passed dramatic tort reforms in 2005. According to the Columbia Tribune, after the tort reform passed, medical malpractice insurance companies increased their profits of couple percent to nearly a 25 percent return on investment.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;While the insurance companies make money, malpractice victims will not see their right to a day in court.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;quot;Effectively, the courthouse door has been slammed in their face by the non-economic cap put on in Missouri,&amp;quot; [said a Missouri attorney] who represents plaintiffs in medical malpractice litigation. &amp;quot;What was pushed as stopping the windfall for the plaintiffs has turned into a windfall for the insurance companies.&amp;quot;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;***&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;With the cap in place on economic damages, little can be recovered when the plaintiffs are children, nonworking mothers, the retired and the disabled because there are no wages or long-term earnings involved in the computation of what can be recovered.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;In Missouri, tort reformers have placed almost no value on the life of children, stay-at-home moms, the elderly and the disabled. Isn't the life of a stay-at-home mom worth as much (if not more) as a corporate executive? In a Missouri medical case, it is not. What's wrong with this country when legislators bow down to lobbyists at the expense of mothers, children, the disabled and the elderly.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Unfortunately for one insurance lobbyist, he learned his lesson too little too late. Frank Cornelius wrote a piece entitled, &lt;em&gt;&lt;u&gt;Crushed By My Own Reform&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/em&gt;, which was published in several major newspapers including the New York Times and the Dallas Morning News. My citation comes from the Dallas Morning News, October 10, 1994, Monday, HOME FINAL EDITION, at p. 13A.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;In 1975, I helped persuade the Indiana Legislature to pass what was acclaimed as a pioneering reform of the medical malpractice laws: a $500,000 cap on damage awards, and elimination of all damages for pain and suffering.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt; &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;I argued successfully that such limits would reduce health-care costs and encourage physicians to stay in Indiana _ the same sort of arguments that now underpin the medical industry's call for national malpractice reform.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Today, from my wheelchair, I rue that accomplishment.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;***&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The cost of this cascading series of medical debacles is painful to tally:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt; &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;. I am confined to a wheelchair and need a respirator to keep breathing. I have not been able to work.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;. I have continuous physical pain in my legs and feet, prompting my doctor to hook me up to an apparatus that drips morphine. My pain used to rate a 10 on a scale of 1 to 10. Now it's about a 4.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;. Twice, I have received last rites from my church.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;. My marriage is ending, and the emotional fallout on our five children has been difficult to witness, to say the least.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;. At the age of 49, I am told that I have less than two years to live.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;My medical expenses and lost wages, projected to retirement age if I should live that long, come to more than $ 5 million. Claims against the hospital and physical therapist have been settled for a total of $500,000 _ the limit on damages for a single incident of malpractice.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;***&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The kicker, of course, is that I fought to enact the very law that limits my compensation. All my suffering might have been worthwhile, on some cosmic scale, if the law had accomplished its stated purpose. But it hasn't.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt; &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Indiana's health care costs increased 139.4 percent from 1980 to 1990 _ just about the national average. The state ranked 32nd in per-capita health care spending in 1990 _ the same as in 1980.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;It's understandable that the damage cap has done nothing to curb health-care spending; the two have almost nothing to do with each other.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;***&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The prospect that these reforms&amp;quot; will be enacted is frightening. Make no mistake, damage caps are arbitrary, wholly disregarding the nature of the injury and the pain experienced by the plaintiff.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;They make it harder to seek and recover compensation for medical injuries; extend unwarranted special protection to the medical industry; and remove the only effective deterrent to negligent medical care, since the medical profession has never done an effective job of disciplining negligent doctors.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Medical negligence cannot be reduced simply by restricting consumers' legal rights. That will happen only when the medical industry begins to effectively police its own.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;I don't expect to live to see that day.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;We should not make the mistake that Frank Cornelius made. We should not give up our constitutional rights to protect ourselves from some imaginary boogeyman. Stand up for your rights. Protect yourself and your family.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;a href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/miscellaneous/tort-reform-insurance-lobbyists-try-to-take-away-your-rights.aspx?googleid=274736"&gt;Originally posted&lt;/a&gt; at &lt;a href="http://www.InjuryBoard.com"&gt;InjuryBoard&lt;/a&gt; by &lt;a href="http://www.injuryboard.com/Brett-Emison/"&gt;Brett Emison&lt;/a&gt;</description>
      <link>http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/miscellaneous/tort-reform-insurance-lobbyists-try-to-take-away-your-rights.aspx?googleid=274736</link>
      <source url="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/">Kansas City Personal Injury Lawyer</source>
      <category>Miscellaneous</category>
      <category>tort reform</category>
      <category> right to trial</category>
      <category> jury trial</category>
      <category> constitutional rights</category>
      <category> Frank Cornelius</category>
      <category> insurance</category>
      <category> lobbyist</category>
      <dc:creator>Brett Emison</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Fri, 20 Nov 2009 13:51:52 GMT</pubDate>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Yaz Side Effects: How Does Yaz Cause A Heart Attack?</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;Popular contraceptives Yaz, Yasmin and Ocella have been linked to several &lt;a href="http://www.yazhealthrisk.com/"&gt;serious side effects&lt;/a&gt;, including &lt;a href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/fda-and-prescription-drugs/yazyasminocella-side-effects-how-does-yaz-cause-a-stroke.aspx?googleid=274760"&gt;strokes&lt;/a&gt; and heart attack. Why does Yaz cause heart attacks?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The problem primarily lies with the key chemical ingredient, &lt;em&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Drospirenone&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/em&gt;. Yaz, Yasmin and Ocella combine estrogen with a synthetic progestin called Drospirenone. No other contraceptive (or birth control) pills contain Drospirenone. The combination of chemicals in Yaz has been reported to increase the risk of blood clots by more than 600%.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;img alt="Side_effects-drosperinone" width="549" height="608" src="http://www.yazhealthrisk.com/images/side_effects-drosperinone.jpg?1258410645" /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Blood clotting is a normal bodily function. This function normally stops blood flow from cuts and creates scabs to stop bleeding. This function repairs damage to the skin and other body tissues. However, the chemical combinations in Yaz, Yasmin and Ocella can cause abnormal blood clotting. This results in blood clotting when it is unnecessary and inside the blood vessel, vein or artery.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;These abnormal blood clots can break away from the blood vessel on which they formed. When these clots break away they travel through the blood stream and can form a blockage or become lodged inside the heart itself. This blockage can starve the flow of blood and cause a heart attack.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://www.yazhealthrisk.com/"&gt;Learn more&lt;/a&gt; about Yaz and Yasmin side effects and what you can do to if you have taken these birth control pills.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;a href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/fda-and-prescription-drugs/yaz-side-effects-how-does-yaz-cause-a-heart-attack.aspx?googleid=274706"&gt;Originally posted&lt;/a&gt; at &lt;a href="http://www.InjuryBoard.com"&gt;InjuryBoard&lt;/a&gt; by &lt;a href="http://www.injuryboard.com/Brett-Emison/"&gt;Brett Emison&lt;/a&gt;</description>
      <link>http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/fda-and-prescription-drugs/yaz-side-effects-how-does-yaz-cause-a-heart-attack.aspx?googleid=274706</link>
      <source url="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/">Kansas City Personal Injury Lawyer</source>
      <category>FDA &amp; Prescription Drugs</category>
      <category>Yaz</category>
      <category> Yasmin</category>
      <category> Ocella</category>
      <category> side effect</category>
      <category> drospirenone</category>
      <category> heart attack</category>
      <category> stroke</category>
      <category> pulmonary embolism</category>
      <category> deep vein thrombosis</category>
      <category> DVT</category>
      <category> PE</category>
      <category> young women</category>
      <category> lawsuit</category>
      <category> lawyer</category>
      <category> attorney</category>
      <category> multidistrict litigation</category>
      <category> MDL</category>
      <dc:creator>Brett Emison</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Thu, 19 Nov 2009 18:31:57 GMT</pubDate>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>AstraZeneca: Judge Returns Seroquel Lawsuits To Original Courts</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;Bloomberg News has &lt;a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=email_en&amp;amp;sid=asXBF7VliqVQ"&gt;reported&lt;/a&gt; that federal district judge, the honorable Anne Conway, will urge a panel of judges to return all of the Seroquel cases to courts across the United States for trial in their home courts.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Nov. 19 (Bloomberg) -- &lt;a t_above="true" t_static="true" t_fontcolor="#000000" t_fontface="Verdana,sans-serif" t_bgcolor="#ddedd9" t_width="110" t_delay="50" href="/apps/quote?ticker=AZN%3ALN"&gt;AstraZeneca Plc&lt;/a&gt; may face as many 6,000 trials of lawsuits claiming its antipsychotic drug Seroquel causes diabetes after a judge said she will recommend sending the cases back to their home courts.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;U.S. District Judge &lt;a t_above="true" t_static="true" t_fontcolor="#000000" t_fontface="Verdana,sans-serif" t_bgcolor="#ddedd9" t_width="110" t_delay="50" href="http://search.bloomberg.com/search?q=Anne+Conway&amp;amp;site=wnews&amp;amp;client=wnews&amp;amp;proxystylesheet=wnews&amp;amp;output=xml_no_dtd&amp;amp;ie=UTF-8&amp;amp;oe=UTF-8&amp;amp;filter=p&amp;amp;getfields=wnnis&amp;amp;sort=date:D:S:d1"&gt;Anne Conway&lt;/a&gt; in Orlando, Florida, who is overseeing pre-trial proceedings in federal Seroquel litigation, said yesterday she&amp;rsquo;ll urge a panel of judges to return all of the cases to courts across the U.S. for possible trials.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;AstraZeneca, the U.K.&amp;rsquo;s second-largest drugmaker, wanted Conway to send as many as 60 suits back to their home courts for trial as test cases. Lawyers for former users contended they were ready to press forward on their claims that the London- based company downplayed Seroquel&amp;rsquo;s diabetes risk.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Judge Conway's action was welcomed by the Seroquel users who brought these lawsuits after suffering severe side effects including the following:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;
    &lt;li&gt;weight gain&lt;/li&gt;
    &lt;li&gt;diabetes&lt;/li&gt;
    &lt;li&gt;heart attack&lt;/li&gt;
    &lt;li&gt;tardive sykinesia&lt;/li&gt;
    &lt;li&gt;hyperglycemia&lt;/li&gt;
    &lt;li&gt;pancreatitis&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The action is expected to move many of these cases forward and &amp;quot;get the litigation moving.&amp;quot;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The company faces more than 14,000 suits in U.S. state and federal courts alleging Seroquel caused diabetes in some users. Seroquel, which generated &lt;a t_above="true" t_static="true" t_fontcolor="#000000" t_fontface="Verdana,sans-serif" t_bgcolor="#ddedd9" t_width="110" t_delay="50" href="/apps/quote?ticker=AZN%3AUS"&gt;sales&lt;/a&gt; of $4.45 billion in 2008, is AstraZeneca&amp;rsquo;s second-biggest seller after the ulcer treatment Nexium.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;***&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;AstraZeneca officials noted in regulatory filings last month that the drugmaker could face the first trials of Seroquel suits in state courts in Delaware and New Jersey in January. The company also disclosed it has spent $623 million in &amp;ldquo;legal defense costs&amp;rdquo; for Seroquel litigation so far.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;AstraZeneca has been under increasing scrutiny because of the serious and potentially deadly side effects of its popular anti-psychotic drug, Seroquel.  In just the past few weeks, there have been a number of negative reports regarding Seroquel:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;
    &lt;li&gt;&lt;a href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/fda-and-prescription-drugs/astrazeneca-paid-doctors-millions-to-promote-seroquel-despite-problems.aspx?googleid=274596"&gt;AstraZeneca paid doctors to promote Seroquel despite knowing of problems with the research&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
    &lt;li&gt;&lt;a href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/fda-and-prescription-drugs/astrazeneca-pays-more-than-half-a-billion-dollars-to-settle-seroquel-cases.aspx?googleid=273664"&gt;AstraZeneca paid more than half a billion dollars to settle four Seroquel lawsuits&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
    &lt;li&gt;&lt;a href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/fda-and-prescription-drugs/astrazeneca-denied-seroquel-diabetes-link-in-us-years-after-acknowledging-danger-in-japan.aspx?googleid=271302"&gt;AstraZeneca denied Seroquel's diabetes side effect in the US years after acknowledging the problem in Japan&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Like so many other major companies, AstraZeneca's conduct shows that it values stock value more than health, safety and life.  Why do these giant corporations get to play by a different set of rules than the rest of us?  AstraZeneca appears to have ignored known side effects and essentially poisoned thousands of its own customers.  What would happen if an individual -- like you or me -- had done such a thing?  Yet Seroquel sits back fat and happy raking in profits off of the suffering of its customers.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;It's time to hold companies accountable for putting profits over safety and valuing share price above human life.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Learn how to protect yourself against dangerous drugs at our &lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://www.langdonemisondangerousdrugs.com"&gt;web site&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Learn more and become a fan of &lt;a href="http://www.langdonemison.com"&gt;Langdon &amp;amp; Emison&lt;/a&gt; on &lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/pages/Lexington-MO/Langdon-Emison-Trial-Attorneys/96033299425?ref=ts"&gt;Facebook&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;a href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/fda-and-prescription-drugs/astrazeneca-judge-returns-seroquel-lawsuits-to-original-courts.aspx?googleid=274682"&gt;Originally posted&lt;/a&gt; at &lt;a href="http://www.InjuryBoard.com"&gt;InjuryBoard&lt;/a&gt; by &lt;a href="http://www.injuryboard.com/Brett-Emison/"&gt;Brett Emison&lt;/a&gt;</description>
      <link>http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/fda-and-prescription-drugs/astrazeneca-judge-returns-seroquel-lawsuits-to-original-courts.aspx?googleid=274682</link>
      <source url="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/">Kansas City Personal Injury Lawyer</source>
      <category>FDA &amp; Prescription Drugs</category>
      <category>AstraZeneca</category>
      <category> Seroquel</category>
      <category> side effects</category>
      <category> dangerous</category>
      <category> deadly</category>
      <category> FDA</category>
      <category> diabetes</category>
      <category> tardive sykinesia</category>
      <category> hyperglycemia</category>
      <category> pancreatitis</category>
      <category> heart attack</category>
      <category> Langdon &amp; Emison</category>
      <dc:creator>Brett Emison</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Thu, 19 Nov 2009 10:37:36 GMT</pubDate>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Toyota Acceleration Problem: Company Ignores Canadian Customers</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;Canadian source, TheStar.com, has &lt;a href="http://www.thestar.com/business/article/727797--canadians-left-in-the-dark-on-car-mat-danger"&gt;reported&lt;/a&gt; that, even though Toyota has sent letters to millions of U.S. customers warning them about floor mat problems resulting in sudden unexpected acceleration, Toyota has completely ignored its Canadian customers.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Toyota began sending letters to millions of U.S. customers three weeks ago warning them about the danger of loose floor mats interfering with accelerator pedals, but the company hasn't yet personally notified thousands of vehicle owners in Canada.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;***&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;But the Automobile Protection Association, which represents motorist interests, said while complaints about the problem are much lower here &amp;ndash; even on a per-capita basis &amp;ndash; than in the United States, Toyota Canada should still have sent letters like its American counterparts to properly warn all customers.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;quot;They should have done it as a precautionary measure and followed up again later after finding out the cause and resolution,&amp;quot; association president George Iny said.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;quot;We're also not convinced that the issue is only one of mats on the listed vehicles. It may be more complicated than that.&amp;quot;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Toyota's actions -- or inactions in this case -- says much about its safety philosophy and what it holds most dear, ever increasing profits or customer safety. In the United States, Toyota ignored thousands of sudden acceleration reports for &lt;a href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/automobile-accidents/toyota-denied-customer-complaints-on-sudden-acceleration-problem-for-more-than-5-years.aspx?googleid=274028"&gt;more than five years&lt;/a&gt;. In Canada, it is ignoring them still. Even when it finally acknowledged there was a problem in the U.S., Toyota made &lt;a href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/automobile-accidents/inaccurate-and-misleading-statements-on-toyota-sudden-acceleration-problem.aspx?googleid=274000"&gt;false and misleading comments&lt;/a&gt; to make it seem like the problem was less severe than it actually was. NHTSA finally called out Toyota publicly and Toyota has since issued a retraction.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Toyota's conduct tells me a couple things:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;(1) Toyota appears to value money over people's lives.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;(2) Toyota ks not likely to fix this problem on its own without facing significant financial and economic consequences for its despicable conduct.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Too many people have been injured or killed because of unintended acceleration while Toyota continues its hand wringing. It's time that Toyota finally fixes this problem.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Until then, all Toyota drivers must &lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/automobile-accidents/toyota-sudden-acceleration-what-to-do-if-it-happens-to-you.aspx?googleid=274116"&gt;be prepared&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;You can learn more about the Toyota sudden acceleration defect by reading these previous reports of Toyota's sudden acceleration problem:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/automobile-accidents/toyota-denied-customer-complaints-on-sudden-acceleration-problem-for-more-than-5-years.aspx?googleid=274028"&gt;Toyota Denied Sudden Acceleration Problem For More Than 5 Years&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/automobile-accidents/inaccurate-and-misleading-statements-on-toyota-sudden-acceleration-problem.aspx?googleid=274000"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&amp;quot;&lt;/strong&gt;Inaccurate and Misleading&amp;quot; Statements On Toyota Sudden Acceleration Problem&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/automobile-accidents/toyota-sudden-acceleration-case-is-not-closed.aspx?googleid=273964"&gt;Toyota Sudden Acceleration: Case Is Not Closed&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/automobile-accidents/safety-group-responds-to-toyota-on-sudden-acceleration-defect.aspx?googleid=273878"&gt;Safety Group Responds To Toyota On Sudden Acceleration Defect&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/defective-and-dangerous-products/toyota-has-more-troubles-than-just-sudden-acceleration.aspx?googleid=273554"&gt;Toyota Has More Troubles Than Just Sudden Acceleration&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;You can learn more about Toyota's dangerous sudden acceleration defect at our &lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/"&gt;auto safety blog&lt;/a&gt; or by visiting our &lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://www.langdonemison.com"&gt;web site&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Learn more and become a fan of Langdon &amp;amp; Emison on &lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/pages/Lexington-MO/Langdon-Emison-Trial-Attorneys/96033299425?ref=ts"&gt;Facebook&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;a href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/automobile-accidents/toyota-acceleration-problem-company-ignores-canadian-customers.aspx?googleid=274678"&gt;Originally posted&lt;/a&gt; at &lt;a href="http://www.InjuryBoard.com"&gt;InjuryBoard&lt;/a&gt; by &lt;a href="http://www.injuryboard.com/Brett-Emison/"&gt;Brett Emison&lt;/a&gt;</description>
      <link>http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/automobile-accidents/toyota-acceleration-problem-company-ignores-canadian-customers.aspx?googleid=274678</link>
      <source url="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/">Kansas City Personal Injury Lawyer</source>
      <category>Automobile Accidents</category>
      <category>Toyota</category>
      <category> Lexus</category>
      <category> sudden acceleration</category>
      <category> unintended acceleration</category>
      <category> acclerator</category>
      <category> problem</category>
      <category> defect</category>
      <category> gas pedal</category>
      <category> floor mat</category>
      <category> recall</category>
      <category> stuck</category>
      <category> sticking</category>
      <category> stick</category>
      <category> what to do</category>
      <category> Canada</category>
      <category> Canadian</category>
      <category> NHTSA</category>
      <category> Langdon &amp; Emison</category>
      <dc:creator>Brett Emison</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Thu, 19 Nov 2009 10:17:18 GMT</pubDate>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>One Killed in Lincoln, Nebraska Train Crash</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;NBC affiliate, WOWT has &lt;a href="http://www.wowt.com/news/headlines/70459447.html"&gt;reported&lt;/a&gt; that one person was killed when an Amtrak train struck a car at a railroad crossing on the west side of Lincoln, Nebraska.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Police say one person was killed when an Amtrak train struck a car at a crossing on the west side of Lincoln.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Capt. Jim Thoms says the collision occurred at 5:57 a.m. Thursday.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;He says the street will be closed for several hours. There was no word yet on the cause or on the identity of the victim.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family of the person killed in this tragic collision.  This train crash is a tragic reminder of the dangers of railroad crossings.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;There have been several tragic railroad crossing crashes in recent months -- many due to defects and problems with the crossings themselves.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;There were &lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/mass-transit-accidents/railroad-crossing-signal-malfunctions-worry-town-officials.aspx?googleid=274216"&gt;reports&lt;/a&gt; in New Jersey of railroad crossing signal malfunctions that caused warning lights to go off when no train was present. These malfunctions lead to train collisions.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad (BNSF) was &lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/mass-transit-accidents/burlington-norther-sante-fe-railroad-destroys-evidence-in-attempted-cover-up.aspx?googleid=272794"&gt;fined $4 million&lt;/a&gt; for lying to a Minnesota court and attempting to cover up its role in a tragic train crossing crash that killed four people.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Missouri, Illinois and California all part of the top 10 &lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/mass-transit-accidents/railroad-crossing-accidents-know-the-danger.aspx?googleid=271024"&gt;deadliest states for railroad crashes&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;You can learn more about how to protect yourself at railroad crossings at by visiting our &lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/mass-transit-accidents/"&gt;railroad safety blog&lt;/a&gt; or &lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://www.langdonemisontrainaccident.com"&gt;web site&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Learn more and become a fan of &lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://www.langdonemison.com"&gt;Langdon &amp;amp; Emison&lt;/a&gt; on &lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://www.facebook.com/#/pages/Lexington-MO/Langdon-Emison-Trial-Attorneys/96033299425?ref=ts"&gt;Facebook&lt;/a&gt;. &lt;/p&gt;&lt;a href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/mass-transit-accidents/one-killed-in-lincoln-nebraska-train-crash.aspx?googleid=274676"&gt;Originally posted&lt;/a&gt; at &lt;a href="http://www.InjuryBoard.com"&gt;InjuryBoard&lt;/a&gt; by &lt;a href="http://www.injuryboard.com/Brett-Emison/"&gt;Brett Emison&lt;/a&gt;</description>
      <link>http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/mass-transit-accidents/one-killed-in-lincoln-nebraska-train-crash.aspx?googleid=274676</link>
      <source url="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/">Kansas City Personal Injury Lawyer</source>
      <category>Mass Transit (Airline, Cruise Ship, Train, Bus)</category>
      <category>Lincoln</category>
      <category> Nebraska</category>
      <category> Missouri</category>
      <category> Illinois</category>
      <category> California</category>
      <category> train</category>
      <category> railroad</category>
      <category> railroad crossing</category>
      <category> accident</category>
      <category> crash</category>
      <category> collision</category>
      <category> attorney</category>
      <category> lawyer</category>
      <category> Langdon &amp; Emison</category>
      <dc:creator>Brett Emison</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Thu, 19 Nov 2009 10:01:01 GMT</pubDate>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Toyota Accelerator Recall:  Potential Fixes Discussed</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;The Detroit Free Press has &lt;a href="http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091118/BUSINESS01/911180370/1322/Toyota-looking-beyond-the-mats&amp;amp;template=fullarticle"&gt;reported&lt;/a&gt; on talks between government regulators and Toyota regarding potential fixes for the Toyota sudden acceleration problem.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Federal regulators and Toyota Motor Corp. are discussing whether the automaker needs to fix gas pedals or floor pans in millions of recalled vehicles instead of blaming floor mats, which the automaker had maintained was the source of unintended acceleration cases.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;banner id="__gelement_adbanner_1" position="ArticleFlex_1"&gt;&lt;/banner&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

&lt;p&gt;The talks are the result of new evidence from safety tests and allegations in some lawsuits, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, which has received more than 400 complaints about acceleration problems that include several fatalities.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;While this is a nice first step -- and only after &lt;a href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/automobile-accidents/toyota-denied-customer-complaints-on-sudden-acceleration-problem-for-more-than-5-years.aspx?googleid=274028"&gt;5 years of ignoring the problem&lt;/a&gt; -- Toyota's tepid response is highly disturbing.  Toyota still flatly refuses to investigate any potential malfunctions of its electronic throttle control.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;u&gt;&lt;em&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Toyota continues to deny that electronic technology was a factor in any reported case of unintended acceleration, said spokesman Mike Michels.&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;More than &lt;a href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/automobile-accidents/toyota-denied-customer-complaints-on-sudden-acceleration-problem-for-more-than-5-years.aspx?googleid=274028"&gt;5 years ago&lt;/a&gt;, the Center for Auto Safety identified the electronic throttle control as the most likely source of the sudden acceleration defect.  However, Toyota continues to public deny the possibility.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Too many people have been injured or killed because of unintended acceleration while Toyota continues its hand wringing.  It's time that Toyota finally fixes this problem.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Until then, all Toyota drivers must &lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/automobile-accidents/toyota-sudden-acceleration-what-to-do-if-it-happens-to-you.aspx?googleid=274116"&gt;be prepared&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;You can learn more about the Toyota sudden acceleration defect by reading these previous reports of Toyota's sudden acceleration problem:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/automobile-accidents/toyota-denied-customer-complaints-on-sudden-acceleration-problem-for-more-than-5-years.aspx?googleid=274028"&gt;Toyota Denied Sudden Acceleration Problem For More Than 5 Years&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/automobile-accidents/inaccurate-and-misleading-statements-on-toyota-sudden-acceleration-problem.aspx?googleid=274000"&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&amp;quot;&lt;/strong&gt;Inaccurate and Misleading&amp;quot; Statements On Toyota Sudden Acceleration Problem&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/automobile-accidents/toyota-sudden-acceleration-case-is-not-closed.aspx?googleid=273964"&gt;Toyota Sudden Acceleration: Case Is Not Closed&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/automobile-accidents/safety-group-responds-to-toyota-on-sudden-acceleration-defect.aspx?googleid=273878"&gt;Safety Group Responds To Toyota On Sudden Acceleration Defect&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/defective-and-dangerous-products/toyota-has-more-troubles-than-just-sudden-acceleration.aspx?googleid=273554"&gt;Toyota Has More Troubles Than Just Sudden Acceleration&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;You can learn more about Toyota's dangerous sudden acceleration defect at our &lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/"&gt;auto safety blog&lt;/a&gt; or by visiting our &lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://www.langdonemison.com"&gt;web site&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Learn more and become a fan of Langdon &amp;amp; Emison on &lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/pages/Lexington-MO/Langdon-Emison-Trial-Attorneys/96033299425?ref=ts"&gt;Facebook&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;a href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/automobile-accidents/toyota-accelerator-recall-potential-fixes-discussed.aspx?googleid=274646"&gt;Originally posted&lt;/a&gt; at &lt;a href="http://www.InjuryBoard.com"&gt;InjuryBoard&lt;/a&gt; by &lt;a href="http://www.injuryboard.com/Brett-Emison/"&gt;Brett Emison&lt;/a&gt;</description>
      <link>http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/automobile-accidents/toyota-accelerator-recall-potential-fixes-discussed.aspx?googleid=274646</link>
      <source url="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/">Kansas City Personal Injury Lawyer</source>
      <category>Automobile Accidents</category>
      <category>Toyota</category>
      <category> Lexus</category>
      <category> sudden acceleration</category>
      <category> unintended acceleration</category>
      <category> accelerator</category>
      <category> problem</category>
      <category> pedal</category>
      <category> floor mat</category>
      <category> recall</category>
      <category> stuck</category>
      <category> stick</category>
      <category> sticking</category>
      <category> what do do</category>
      <category> NHTSA</category>
      <category> Langdon &amp; Emison</category>
      <dc:creator>Brett Emison</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Wed, 18 Nov 2009 14:48:15 GMT</pubDate>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Yaz Side Effects: FDA Warning Letters</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has sent several warning letters to Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals, Inc. for what the FDA termed &amp;ldquo;misleading&amp;rdquo; advertising spots it found &amp;ldquo;particularly troubling&amp;rdquo; because they served to &amp;ldquo;undermine the communication of important risk information, minimizing these risks and misleadingly suggesting that Yaz is safer than has been demonstrated by substantial evidence or substantial clinical experience.&amp;rdquo;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;In the 8-page FDA Warning Letter regarding Yaz dated October 3, 2008 two TV ads were cited as overstating the efficacy of the drug and minimizing the risks and side effects associated with using Yaz. Yaz related lawsuits allege that the warnings were inadequate in fully describing the potential side effects including heart attacks, strokes, gallbladder disease, deep vein thrombosis, pulmonary embolism, cardiac arrhythmias and sudden death. The FDA sent three letters to the makers of Yasmin and Yaz regarding the potential for hyperkalemia in high-risk patients and their failure to clarify that risk.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.yazhealthrisk.com/docs/2003_Yaz_Warning.pdf"&gt;2003 Yaz/Yasmin FDA Warning Letter&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.yazhealthrisk.com/docs/2008_Yaz_Warning.pdf"&gt;2008 Yaz/Yasmin FDA Warning Letter&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.yazhealthrisk.com/docs/2009_Yaz_Warning.pdf"&gt;2009 Yaz/Yasmin FDA Warning Letter&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Yaz and Yasmin have been very popular among young women due to Bayer's &amp;quot;particularly troubling&amp;quot; advertising targeting young women and unconfirmed &amp;quot;benefits&amp;quot; of these birth control pills. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;However, these drugs -- Yaz, Yasmin and Ocella -- have been linked to potentially deadly side effects, including heart attack, stroke, pulmonary embolism (PE), deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and gallbladder trouble. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;These serious side effects are caused by a key chemical found in Yas, Yasmin and Ocella -- Drosperinone.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;img alt="Side_effects-drosperinone" width="414" height="561" src="http://www.yazhealthrisk.com/images/side_effects-drosperinone.jpg?1258410645" /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.yazhealthrisk.com/"&gt;Learn more&lt;/a&gt; about Yaz and Yasmin side effects and what you can do to if you have taken these birth control pills.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;a href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/fda-and-prescription-drugs/yaz-side-effects-fda-warning-letters.aspx?googleid=274616"&gt;Originally posted&lt;/a&gt; at &lt;a href="http://www.InjuryBoard.com"&gt;InjuryBoard&lt;/a&gt; by &lt;a href="http://www.injuryboard.com/Brett-Emison/"&gt;Brett Emison&lt;/a&gt;</description>
      <link>http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/fda-and-prescription-drugs/yaz-side-effects-fda-warning-letters.aspx?googleid=274616</link>
      <source url="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/">Kansas City Personal Injury Lawyer</source>
      <category>FDA &amp; Prescription Drugs</category>
      <category>Yaz</category>
      <category> Yasmin</category>
      <category> Ocella</category>
      <category> FDA</category>
      <category> letter</category>
      <category> side effect</category>
      <category> danger</category>
      <category> Drospirenone</category>
      <category> heart attack</category>
      <category> stroke</category>
      <category> pulmonary embolism</category>
      <category> deep vein thrombosis</category>
      <category> PE</category>
      <category> DVT</category>
      <category> young women</category>
      <category> lawsuit</category>
      <category> attorney</category>
      <category> lawyer</category>
      <category> multi-district litigation</category>
      <category> MDL</category>
      <dc:creator>Brett Emison</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Tue, 17 Nov 2009 16:19:20 GMT</pubDate>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>Yaz Side Effects</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;Popular birth control pills, Yaz, Yasmin and Ocella, have been &lt;a href="http://www.yazhealthrisk.com/yaz/side_effects/drosperinone"&gt;linked to serious and potentially deadly side effects&lt;/a&gt;.  This deadly side effects affect women of all ages, including teens and young women.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;u&gt;How Yaz Causes Heart Attack and Stroke&lt;/u&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Yas and Yasmin have been linked to serious side effects, such as hear attack, stroke, pulmonary embolism (PE), deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and sudden cardiac death.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Yas and Yasmin contain the chemical, Drosperinone, which acts as a diuretic and causes fluid loss.  This fluid loss decreases sodium in the blood and increases potassium.  This imbalance causes irregular heartbeats and blood pooling, resulting in heart attacks, blood clots and stroke.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;img alt="Side_effects-drosperinone" width="443" height="535" src="http://www.yazhealthrisk.com/images/side_effects-drosperinone.jpg?1258410645" /&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;a href="http://www.yazhealthrisk.com/"&gt;Learn more about Yasmin side effects and how to protect yourself&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;&lt;a href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/fda-and-prescription-drugs/yaz.aspx?googleid=274612"&gt;Originally posted&lt;/a&gt; at &lt;a href="http://www.InjuryBoard.com"&gt;InjuryBoard&lt;/a&gt; by &lt;a href="http://www.injuryboard.com/Brett-Emison/"&gt;Brett Emison&lt;/a&gt;</description>
      <link>http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/fda-and-prescription-drugs/yaz.aspx?googleid=274612</link>
      <source url="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/">Kansas City Personal Injury Lawyer</source>
      <category>FDA &amp; Prescription Drugs</category>
      <category>Yaz</category>
      <category> Yasmin</category>
      <category> Ocella</category>
      <category> side effects</category>
      <category> heart attack</category>
      <category> stroke</category>
      <category> blood clot</category>
      <category> DVT</category>
      <category> PE</category>
      <category> pulmonary embolism</category>
      <category> deep vein thrombosis</category>
      <category> young women</category>
      <category> health</category>
      <category> risk</category>
      <dc:creator>Brett Emison</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Tue, 17 Nov 2009 16:06:02 GMT</pubDate>
    </item>
    <item>
      <title>AstraZeneca Paid Doctors Millions To Promote Seroquel Despite Problems</title>
      <description>&lt;p&gt;The Chicago Tribune recently &lt;a href="http://www.chicagotribune.com/health/chi-drugs-seroquel-reinsteinnov11,0,6067737.story"&gt;reported&lt;/a&gt; on the millions that foreign drug maker AstraZeneca paid doctors to promote its anti-psychotic drug, Seroquel, despite doctors' concerns about Seroquel side effects.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Executives inside pharmaceutical giant &lt;a id="ORCRP001304" class="taxInlineTagLink" title="AstraZeneca Plc" href="/topic/economy-business-finance/astrazeneca-plc-ORCRP001304.topic"&gt;AstraZeneca&lt;/a&gt; faced a high-stakes dilemma.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
On one hand, Chicago &lt;a id="HEMSP0000113" class="taxInlineTagLink" title="Psychiatry" href="/topic/health/medical-specialization/psychiatry-HEMSP0000113.topic"&gt;psychiatrist&lt;/a&gt; Dr. Michael Reinstein was bringing the company a small fortune in sales and was conducting research that made one of its most promising drugs look spectacular.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;***&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&amp;quot;If he is in fact worth half a billion dollars to (AstraZeneca),&amp;quot; the company's U.S. sales chief wrote in 2001, &amp;quot;we need to put him in a different category.&amp;quot; To avoid scaring Reinstein away, he said, the firm should answer &amp;quot;his every query and satisfy any of his quirky behaviors.&amp;quot;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Putting aside its concerns, AstraZeneca would continue its relationship with Reinstein, paying him $490,000 over a decade to travel the nation promoting its best-selling antipsychotic drug, &lt;a id="HEDAR00000120" class="taxInlineTagLink" title="Seroquel (drug)" href="/topic/health/drugs-medicines/seroquel-%28drug%29-HEDAR00000120.topic"&gt;Seroquel&lt;/a&gt;. In return, Reinstein provided the company a vast customer base: thousands of mentally ill residents in Chicago-area nursing homes.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;***&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The AstraZeneca payments, filed as exhibits in a federal lawsuit, highlight the extent to which a leading drug company helped sustain one of the busiest psychiatrists working in local nursing facilities.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The Tribune's report comes on the heels of AstraZeneca's &lt;a href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/fda-and-prescription-drugs/astrazeneca-pays-more-than-half-a-billion-dollars-to-settle-seroquel-cases.aspx?googleid=273664"&gt;$520 million settlement&lt;/a&gt; of two federal investigations and two whistle blower lawsuits and on the heels of reports that drug giant Pfizer &lt;a href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/fda-and-prescription-drugs/report-pfizer-mislead-regulators-public-on-neurontin.aspx?googleid=274348"&gt;misled regulators&lt;/a&gt; about its epilepsy drug, Neurontin.  AstraZeneca's drug, Seroquel, has been reported to have &lt;a href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/fda-and-prescription-drugs/dangerous-drugs-know-the-facts-and-protect-yourself.aspx?googleid=270658"&gt;several severe side effects&lt;/a&gt; including hyperglycemia, diabetes, weight gain and heart attack.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Though weight gain is a side effect, the doctor paid by AstraZeneca reported that Seroquel actually helped patients to lose weight.  Findings that were directly contradicted by the doctor's own patients.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Chanile Hayes, a South Side resident, says she came under Reinstein's care at a psychiatric hospital after she suffered a nervous breakdown nearly 10 years ago. She found it odd, she said, when Reinstein told her that taking Seroquel would help her lose weight.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;quot;I couldn't understand why he wasn't taking it because he was a plus-sized man himself,&amp;quot; said Hayes, now 37. She is one of thousands of people nationwide suing AstraZeneca on allegations it concealed Seroquel's links to weight gain and &lt;a id="HEDAI0000022" class="taxInlineTagLink" title="Diabetes" href="/topic/health/diseases/diabetes-HEDAI0000022.topic"&gt;diabetes&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;***&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Hayes said she went from 140 pounds to nearly 300 within two years of taking the drug and later developed diabetes.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Reinstein -- the doctor AstraZeneca paid to promote its drug, Seroquel -- in 2001 told 5,000 other doctors that Seroquel could be used for taking away excessive appetite.  However, just two years later, the FDA asked AstraZeneca to warn about Seroquel's diabetes risk. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Seroquel's label now cautions that the drug is linked to diabetes and weight gain.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;It turns out that AstraZeneca executive also had doubts and questions Dr. Reinsten's work.  Corporate emails revealed executive's misgivings about Dr. Reinstein's conclusions.  The results were too good to be true.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;One [executive] called Reinstein's conclusion that patients experienced no adverse effects &amp;quot;suspect&amp;quot; and &amp;quot;hard to believe.&amp;quot;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;At one point, Dr. Reinstein complained that AstraZeneca was not taking care of him and other doctors prescribing Seroquel.  Dr. Reinstein claimed to be one of the largest prescribers of Seroquel in the world.  AstraZeneca caved in to Dr. Reinstein.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;At one point, according to an e-mail from an AstraZeneca executive, Reinstein and his partners had &amp;quot;blatantly threatened&amp;quot; to switch patients to a Seroquel competitor. Reinstein later denied that accusation during a deposition, testifying that he &amp;quot;cannot imagine&amp;quot; making such a threat.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
Malcolm May, AstraZeneca's U.S. sales director, reacted to Reinstein's discontent by saying that the company should be careful not to alienate a psychiatrist worth up to a half-billion dollars to the firm.&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
&amp;quot;I am not suggesting we kowtow to his whims, nor to support any unethical behavior,&amp;quot; May wrote in 2001 in an e-mail to fellow AstraZeneca executives. &amp;quot;I am suggesting ... we need to be more responsive to his opinion and needs.&amp;quot;&lt;br /&gt;
&lt;br /&gt;
May continued: &amp;quot;It seems we are annoying possibly our most important single customer, and that is not acceptable. ... My concern is that Dr. Reinstein could be looking for a trigger to leave our fold. That would be disastrous for our Seroquel business in the short and long term.&amp;quot;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/blockquote&gt;
&lt;p&gt;When faced with a choice of protecting Seroquel patients or protecting its own profits, AstraZeneca chose profits over safety.  AstraZeneca appears to have blatantly ignored its own concerns about safety in order to protect a single doctor responsible for more than half a billion dollars in Seroquel sales.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Why do giant pharmaceutical companies like AstraZeneca think they can get away this kind of behavior?  If you or I -- as members of the general public -- engaged in conduct like this, we would be hauled off to jail.  Why do drug giants get their own set of rules where they can make up science, lie to federal regulators and kill people?  It's time the drug companies are held responsible for their actions.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Learn how to protect yourself against dangerous drugs at our &lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://www.langdonemisondangerousdrugs.com"&gt;web site&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Learn more and become a fan of Langdon &amp;amp; Emison on &lt;a ywaonclickoverride="true" href="http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/pages/Lexington-MO/Langdon-Emison-Trial-Attorneys/96033299425?ref=ts"&gt;Facebook&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt; &lt;/p&gt;&lt;a href="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/fda-and-prescription-drugs/astrazeneca-paid-doctors-millions-to-promote-seroquel-despite-problems.aspx?googleid=274596"&gt;Originally posted&lt;/a&gt; at &lt;a href="http://www.InjuryBoard.com"&gt;InjuryBoard&lt;/a&gt; by &lt;a href="http://www.injuryboard.com/Brett-Emison/"&gt;Brett Emison&lt;/a&gt;</description>
      <link>http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/fda-and-prescription-drugs/astrazeneca-paid-doctors-millions-to-promote-seroquel-despite-problems.aspx?googleid=274596</link>
      <source url="http://kansascity.injuryboard.com/">Kansas City Personal Injury Lawyer</source>
      <category>FDA &amp; Prescription Drugs</category>
      <category>AstraZeneca</category>
      <category> Seroquel</category>
      <category> Pfizer</category>
      <category> Neurontin</category>
      <category> Chicago</category>
      <category> Illinois</category>
      <category> Dr. Michael Reinstein</category>
      <category> side effects</category>
      <category> dangerous</category>
      <category> FDA</category>
      <category> diabetes</category>
      <category> tardive sykinesia</category>
      <category> hyperglycemia</category>
      <category> pancreatitis</category>
      <category> heart attack</category>
      <category> Langdon &amp; Emison</category>
      <dc:creator>Brett Emison</dc:creator>
      <pubDate>Tue, 17 Nov 2009 11:33:35 GMT</pubDate>
    </item>
  </channel>
</rss>