Viagra suit filed in city
Viagra suit filed in city
Local user alleges pill led to partial vision loss
By Sara Eaton
The Journal Gazette
A Fort Wayne man is suing the country’s largest pharmaceutical company alleging the drug Viagra left him partially blind in one eye.
Robert Troutman, who received a Viagra sample package from his family doctor, took a pill Aug. 27, 2003, and woke the next morning to find “dramatic reduction in vision in his left eye,” according to the class-action lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court this week.
In the lawsuit, Troutman alleges Pfizer Inc. acted negligently in the promotion, production and distribution of the drug intended to aid men suffering from erectile dysfunction. Troutman was hospitalized and underwent medical procedures to determine the cause of the partial blindness. Troutman, according to the lawsuit, was not taking other medications that are warned against in the labeling of Viagra.
Troutman also contends that Pfizer misrepresented the results of studies during promotional efforts, therefore minimizing the risk of vision problems when marketing the drug to the public. Pfizer, according to the lawsuit, had the duty to responsibly research and develop the drug but failed to do so and failed to effectively alert consumers to the risks.
On behalf of men similarly situated, Troutman is seeking an unspecified amount of damages for medical expenses incurred, loss of earnings, diminished earnings and future medical expenses, as well as punitive damages.
A representative of Pfizer Inc., based in New York, did not return messages seeking comment Friday.
According to the April, 18, 2005, edition of Fortune, Pfizer is the largest pharmaceutical company in the United States. The company ranks 24th in the country’s top 500 companies and employs 115,000 people.
According to a May press releaseon the Pfizer Web site, Viagra has been used in 103 clinical trials with 13,000 patients, none of whom reported having the specific eye injury Troutman is suing over. However, the press release also says Pfizer was in the midst of trying to update the prescription labels to reflect the “rare ocular occurrences.”
The release also says that Viagra is a safe drug that has helped more than 23 million men and continues to be the leading drug to help those with erectile dysfunction.
So far, Troutman is the only person being represented in this class action lawsuit, his attorney, J. Michael Loomis, said. If other men come forward and wish to become part of the lawsuit, they can be added as a party, Loomis said.
The lawsuit states other people who would be considered part of the class are individuals who live in Indiana, orally ingested Viagra at the advice of their doctor for the treatment of erectile dysfunction, and who suffered irreversible vision loss as a result.
