Johnson & Johnson Hid Antibiotic Levaquin Risk, Lawyer Says
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A Johnson & Johnson unit knew its antibiotic Levaquin increased the risk of tendon damage in the elderly and failed to properly warn patients or doctors, a lawyer said today at the start of a trial in Minnesota.
Calvin Christensen, 84, who said he ruptured the Achilles tendon in his right foot after taking the drug while hospitalized with pneumonia, sued the company and its Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceutical unit in 2007. The companies downplayed the risks of Levaquin to boost the drug’s sales, Christensen’s lawyer, Saul Lewis, said in his opening statement.