Tepezza is an injectable prescription medication that received Federal Drug Administration (FDA) approval in 2020 for treating thyroid eye disease (TED). Despite its usefulness in treating thyroid eye disease, the medication developed by Horizon Therapeutics has been linked to serious health complications, including tinnitus and hearing loss. A recent study showed that the risk of hearing loss was much higher after using Tepezza than Horizon ever let consumers know about.
Many Tepezza users that have suffered from hearing loss because of the use of the dangerous drug have filed product liability lawsuits to recover compensation for damages. A product liability lawyer can review your case, assess your damages, and help you file a Tepezza hearing loss lawsuit with Horizon Therapeutics. The experienced product liability attorneys at The Russo Firm have decades of experience helping product liability victims. They can use that experience to help you recover fair compensation for Tepezza hearing loss damages.
Why Choose The Russo Firm for Your Tepezza Hearing Loss Lawsuit?
Suffering hearing loss after using Tepezza can cause enormous stress and damage to a person. They have to deal with their hearing loss and the thyroid eye disease they used Tepezza for. The product liability lawyers at The Russo Firm can help relieve some of this stress by handling the Tepezza hearing loss lawsuit process. We have experience in taking product liability and defective drug lawsuits to a point where our clients receive fair compensation through settlement negotiations and court cases.
At The Russo Firm, communication is key to representing our clients. We want to hear what happened from your perspective and get a feel for how the harm you received occurred. Using the specific details you provide, we can develop a personalized legal counsel plan that can represent your thoughts, concerns, and damages. Contact The Russo Firm today for a free consultation to learn how our experienced product liability attorneys can help with your Tepezza hearing loss lawsuit.
The Russo Firm Case Results
Receiving compensation for damages caused by Tepezza will involve negotiating with Horizon Therapeutics’ insurance company. As a powerful biopharmaceutical company, it will have an insurance company with vast resources to use to limit your potential settlement to keep its profits up. A less experienced product liability lawyer can make mistakes that can affect your ability to recover fair compensation for damages.
The product liability lawyers at The Russo Firm have vast experience in negotiating settlements and bringing lawsuits to court that can help you recover fair compensation. We know the tricks insurers use to devalue victim claims, including offering lowball early settlements. Our product liability lawyers will use their insurer negotiation experience to combat any attempts to delay, deny, or devalue your claim to help put you in a position to receive compensation that can pay for the full cost of your Tepezza hearing loss damages.
The following are some of the case results we have earned for our clients:
- $3.3 Million for Automobile Accident Caused by Drunk Driving
- $2.4 Million for Medical Malpractice Misdiagnosis
- $2 Million for Wrongful Death Trucking Accident
- $1.75 Million Product Liability Jury Award
- $650 Thousand for Auto Accident Jury Award
What is Tepezza?
Tepezza is the brand name prescription that can help treat thyroid eye disease, otherwise known as Graves’ orbitopathy. Thyroid eye disease is an autoimmune condition in adults that causes your thyroid gland to produce an excess of hormones. This causes the eye muscles, eyelids, tear glands, and fatty tissues behind the eye to inflame, causing the eye and eyelids to become swollen.
The swelling of these eyes caused by thyroid eye disease can result in double vision, light oversensitivity, and pain in or behind the eye. Horizon Therapeutics developed Tepezza to treat this rare eye condition. The drug blocks autoantibodies from affecting the eyes and reduces swelling to treat the symptoms of thyroid eye disease.
Tepezza FDA Approval
There are few remedies for thyroid eye disease, which is what made Tepezza such a vital drug on the market. In 2020, the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) approved Tepezza for thyroid eye disease treatment, making it the first drug of its kind to be approved to treat thyroid eye disease.
Due to it treating a rare disease with few treatments, Tepezza was awarded orphan status by the FDA, which made it a priority for testing for safety. This means the FDA prioritizes finding out if the drug is safe, so it can reach the market faster.
Tepezza Can Cause Hearing Loss
Upon FDA testing of Tepezza, it was found that about 10% of patients were reported to have otologic symptoms, which can include vertigo, tinnitus, and hearing loss. However, a study conducted by the Endocrine Society found that the risk of hearing loss could be as high as 65%. The March 2021 study involved 26 patients, 77% of which never had an auditory impairment, receiving Tepezza dosages four times per day.
The following are the main symptoms found in patients of the Endocrine Society Tepezza study:
- Ear pain (27%)
- Ringing in the ears (38%)
- The feeling of plugged ears and voices being louder than normal (12%)
Of the 26 patients, three developed patulous eustachian tube, a long-lasting hearing problem that caused the channels between the ears, nose, and throat to close. This study found that users of Tepezza were at a much higher risk of developing permanent hearing loss than Horizon Therapeutics originally let on.
Tepezza Side Effects
Thyroid eye disease is a damaging enough medical condition, with the loss of eyesight being a possibility, without issues being compounded by a defective drug. However, that is a reality for some Tepezza users. As mentioned above, as many as 65% of Tepezza users can suffer from some level of hearing loss or tinnitus that can negatively alter the way they live their life.
The following are some of the other symptoms and side effects Tepezza can cause:
- Hearing loss
- Tinnitus
- Increased sensitivity to sound
- Autophony (hearing your own voice as too loud)
- Eustachian tube dysfunction (pressure abnormalities in the middle ear)
- Sensation of ears being plugged or full
- Hearing muffled sounds
If you suffered a severe injury or health condition due to the use of Tepezza, you could file a product liability claim to pursue compensation for damages. A product liability lawyer can help assess your damages and see if you have a case for filing a Tepezza hearing loss lawsuit.
Horizon Failed to Warn of the Dangerous Side Effects of Tepezza
Drug manufacturers owe it to their potential customers to warn them of dangers associated with their products. If a product has a manufacturing defect, design defect, or damaging side effects not warned of in the marketing or labeling of the product, the manufacturer could be held liable for damages in a product liability claim.
In the case of Horizon Pharmaceuticals and Tepezza, the drug manufacturer failed to adequately warn of the risk of hearing loss and tinnitus. Prior to the sale, they mentioned there was a 10% chance of developing otological symptoms when the number was six times as much at 65%. Failing to warn of the risk of hearing loss from Tepezza leaves Horizon Pharmaceuticals liable in product liability lawsuits for Tepezza hearing loss damages.
Filing a Tepezza Hearing Loss Lawsuit
If you received hearing loss or other damages from the use of Tepezza, you could file a product liability lawsuit to pursue compensation from Horizon Pharmaceuticals. The drug manufacturer committed one of the three forms of negligence that can lead to a product liability claim: failing to warn of the dangers of a product.
Tepezza has a high risk of causing hearing loss, which Horizon Pharmaceuticals did not warn consumers of through marketing or labeling of the drug. With the help of a product liability attorney, you can file a product liability claim to pursue Tepezza hearing loss damages.
Many product liability lawsuits regarding Tepezza hearing loss have been filed across the United States. If the number continues to climb, the lawsuits could be consolidated into multidistrict litigation (MDL), which brings all the cases before one judge to streamline discovery and increase the chances of a global settlement. As of right now, that has not happened, so filing a Tepezza hearing loss lawsuit would involve you, along with your product liability lawyer, proving negligence of Horizon Pharmaceuticals to receive compensation for your damages.
Proving a Tepezza Hearing Loss Lawsuit
Just because you have received harm from using Tepezza does not mean that you will immediately recover damages. Most states require plaintiffs to prove the liability of the at-fault party before recovering compensation for damages. If you live in a state that operates under the theory of negligence, you will have to prove the defendant owed you a duty of care, breached the duty of care, and you received damages as a result.
The tricky part about proving damages caused by Tepezza is that you need to show proof that you did not have hearing issues before using the drug. The insurance company representing Horizon Pharmaceuticals can use a pre-existing condition to try to limit your potential compensation. With the help of a product liability lawyer, you can collect tangible evidence of the duty of care you were owed, the breach of the duty of care, and the new damages you suffered as a result.
Tepezza Hearing Loss Lawsuit Damages
Hearing loss can cause catastrophic damage and majorly affect the way you live your life on a daily basis. It can affect whether you can drive the car, listen to music, and you can hold up a conversation with your loved ones. Hearing loss caused by Tepezza can negatively influence your career, relationships, quality of life, and mental health.
You can pursue compensation for damages caused by Tepezza hearing loss. Damages are losses that directly result from the incident you are filing a lawsuit or claim over, and they can happen in the immediate aftermath or years down the line. A product liability lawyer can consult with health experts and use their experience to project the cost of your damages.
There are two common types of product liability damages: economic and non-economic. Economic damages are those with a monetary value attached to them, such as medical bills, lost wages, or the cost of medical devices. Non-economic damages are intangible losses without a specific monetary value that reflect the changes your life has had because of the negligence of the at-fault party, including mental anguish, pain and suffering, and loss of enjoyment of life.
The following are some of the damages you could pursue in a Tepezza hearing loss lawsuit:
- Medical bills
- Cost of medical devices
- Disability costs
- Lost wages
- Lost earning potential
- Mental anguish
- Pain and suffering
- Loss of enjoyment of life
- Loss of companionship
- Loss of consortium
- Loss of society
How Can a Product Liability Lawyer Help With a Tepezza Lawsuit?
Trying to hold a powerful drug manufacturer accountable for their negligence can be challenging for someone without a background in product liability claims. A Tepezza hearing loss victim may make mistakes that can cost them fair compensation for their damages. An experienced product liability lawyer will know the best way to handle the claims process in a way that maximizes your potential compensation.
The following are some of the ways a product liability lawyer can help you pursue Tepezza hearing loss damages:
- Assess the damages caused by Tepezza
- Write and send out the demand letter
- Collect evidence to help you prove the at-fault party’s liability
- Interview expert witnesses to help prove your case
- Use vast resources to help with your claim
- Organize vital records
- Negotiate with the at-fault party’s insurer
- Represent you in court, if necessary
Contact The Russo Firm for Help With Your Tepezza Lawsuit
The Russo Firm has decades of experience holding drug manufacturers accountable for their negligence that caused significant health complications. Horizon Pharmaceuticals made a major error in failing to warn consumers of the hearing loss dangers presented by Tepezza, and we want to help you recover fair compensation for damages. We treat every client with close attention, listening to their thoughts and concerns and addressing them in settlement negotiations.
If you received harm from Tepezza, contact The Russo Firm for a free consultation to see how our personal injury lawyers can help you. Call us at (561) 270-0913 or leave a message on our online contact page.