Viagra lawsuit filed against Pfizer

A Louisiana man, James Thompson, has filed the first lawsuit against Pfizer claiming that Viagra caused partial loss of vision. The FDA is currently investigating the link between Viagra and sudden blindness after a study was published by University of Minnesota in the Journal of Neuro-Ophthalmology with the findings. As expected, Pfizer continues to deny these charges and claims that Viagra is a safe drug. In the meantime, there have been calls for a recall of Viagra. (Related link: Complete coverage of Viagra recall news)

The attorney Daniel Becnel Jr is an expert in personal injury lawsuits and has been active in Bextra class action lawsuits as well. The suit is seeking approval as a class action. If class action status is granted, it will be among the largest class action lawsuits after Vioxx. Viagra has reportedly been used by 23 million men. While the number of instances of vision loss are few, a far larger number of men have impaired vision after they took Viagra. The condition, nonarteritic ischemic optic neuropathy (NAION), described as “stroke of the eye,” occurs when blood flow is cut off to the optic nerve, which injures the nerve and results in permanent vision loss.

The attorney has been quoted as saying in interviews with the media that he plans to file as many as 100 lawsuits nationwide against Pfizer in the Viagra case. The company is already facing thousands of lawsuits related to Bextra and Celebrex. In the Viagra case, however, the compensation being demanded is modest - approximately $75,000.

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