The medical malpractice attorneys at Babbitt & Johnson, P.A. have studied consumer claims, medical data and risk factors for the Type-2 Diabetes drugs, Januvia and Byetta. What the data revealed is that as far back as 2007, the instances of pancreatitis increased after using Byetta or Januvia to treat Type-2 diabetes.

Diabetes is a major health concern for both doctors and consumers. According to 2011 NIH Diabetes Study data, diabetes is the seventh leading cause of death in the United States; affecting 25.8 million people of all ages, nearly 8.3 percent of the population.

Two drugs created to help control the massive Type-2 diabetes problem: Merck’s Januvia and Byetta from Bristol-Myers Squibb could be causing more harm than good.

The Federal Drug Administration (FDA) is now scrutinizing unpublished data reported in a March issue of JAMA’s Internal Medicine. The data was gathered from a Johns Hopkins-Baltimore research study that analyzed the medical records of 1,269 people with Type-2 diabetes who filled at least one prescription for any diabetes drug over a three-year period. The following is compelling information found in that report:

  • Diabetics hospitalized with pancreatitis were twice as likely to be using Januvia or Byetta compared to diabetics who didn’t have pancreatitis.
  • 87 of the patients who developed pancreatitis were taking Byetta or Januvia while 58 of the people who developed pancreatitis were taking some other diabetes drug.

Consumers who have suffered injuries as a result of medication errors due to the drugs Januvia and Byetta can and should use the legal system to seek redress for their injuries – and accountability for medical mistakes. However, the Palm Beach-based medical & hospital negligence attorneys at Babbitt & Johnson, P.A. caution those same consumers to choose legal representation wisely and select a law firm that has knowledge of medications and experience winning medical malpractice cases.