Spaniards Sue Gruenenthal Over Thalidomide

MADRID (AP) -- Some 200 Spaniards born with severe defects after their mothers used the drug thalidomide during their pregnancies decades ago took the drug's German producer to court Monday to seek 204 million euros ($277 million) in compensation. Thalidomide was a sedative prescribed between 1950 and 1960 to combat morning sickness. Thousands of children whose mothers took the drug were born with abnormally short limbs and in some cases without any arms, legs or hips. The birth defects were reported in Europe, Australia, Canada and Japan. Some victims have won compensation cases against drug producer Gruenenthal Group's distributors in other countries, but the German company has long refused to agree to settlements. It officially apologized to victims in 2012. Ignacio Martinez, lawyer for The Spanish Association of Thalidomide Victims, which represents some 200 alleged victims born between 1960 and 1965, told the court in Madrid that the drug's prospectus gave no warning of side effects. When thalidomide was pulled off the market, no campaign was carried out to explain to doctors and patients its potential effects on fetuses, he said. Martinez also argued that the German company kept distributing the notorious drug in Spain six months after it was taken off the market in other countries. Gruenenthal's lawyers rejected the compensation demand, saying the case had exceeded the statute of limitations. The German firm's representative in Spain, Guillermo Castillo, also insi...
Source: PharmaGossip - Category: Pharma Commentators Authors: Source Type: blogs