Baycol, a cholesterol-lowering drug manufactured by Bayer, was recalled from the market on August 8, 2001 after the FDA (Federal Drug Administration) had received reports of 31 deaths in patients who had taken Baycol. The final death count was over 100 for the four years that Baycol was on the market.
When the FDA announced the reported deaths, Bayer voluntarily withdrew Baycol from the market before the FDA could take action to ban or restrict its use. Most of the deaths of Baycol patients resulted from a form of muscle deterioration called rhabdomyolysis that can lead to kidney failure and death. Baycol, generic name cerivastatin, is one of a group of drugs called statins that are used to treat high cholesterol levels. All of the statin drugs have involved incidences of rhabdomyolysis, but the number of cases that resulted from Baycol use was significantly higher than the rate for the other statin drugs.
Thousands of lawsuits have been filed against Bayer for injury caused by Baycol. See Baycol Lawsuits, Litigation & Lawyers for more information. One of most serious charges made against Bayer is that it intentionally withheld information about the dangers of Baycol from the FDA.
Check out the following articles for more information about Baycol, filing a Baycol lawsuit and finding a Baycol attorney.