5-Alpha Reductase Inhibitor Related Litigation: A Legal Database Review
December 2021
in “International Journal of Andrology”
TLDR Most legal cases about 5α-reductase inhibitors, drugs for hair loss and prostate issues, complain about side effects and delayed cancer diagnosis, with most lawsuits settled out of court.
The document reviews 156 legal cases from April 2003 to May 2021 involving 5α-reductase inhibitors, drugs used to treat male pattern hair loss and benign prostatic hyperplasia. Only 18 cases met the inclusion criteria. The most common complaints were medication side effects (66.7%), delayed cancer diagnosis (16.7%), and lack of symptom improvement (16.7%). The plaintiffs were usually the patients (83.3%), and the defendants were pharmaceutical companies (33.3%), a combination of parties (27.8%), and physicians (27.8%). Allegations included sexual side effects like erectile dysfunction (33.3%) and decreased libido (22.2%). No judgment against a physician or pharmaceutical company was found, but many lawsuits were settled out of court, including a $4.3 million settlement. The study concludes that litigation around 5α-reductase inhibitors may increase in the future.
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