Do not discontinue taking any medications without first consulting your physician.
Arava® is the first orally-administered drug for treating rheumatoid arthritis.
It is a Disease-Modifying AntiRheumatic Drug (DMARD), a class of drugs that relieve
pain and slow the disease’s progression but also carry health risks. It was developed
to compete with methotrexate, an extremely similar DMARD that is the standard drug
treatment for advanced rheumatoid arthritis. The FDA acknowledged Arava® was not
significantly different or better than methotrexate, but they justified its approval
by saying it gave consumers some choice.
All rheumatoid arthritis medications require close monitoring of liver functions.
However, Arava® was shown to be significantly more dangerous than other comparable
medications: Arava® was linked to six times more liver damage reports than the most
common DMARD treatment. Arava® may cause liver toxicity, which can lead to hospitalization
and even death.
The FDA has always warned that Arava® carries the risk of liver damage, diarrhea,
skin rash, and hair loss. In Europe, the European Medicines Evaluation Agency released
a public alert, warning of the high number of sometimes-fatal liver reactions to
Arava®. Arava® was later removed from the market due to these hazards.
If you or a loved one suffered injury after taking Arava® , contact a John Bales
drug injury attorney today. Complete a FREE Online Consultation Form
or call us toll free 1-800-CALL JOHN (1-800-225-5564) 24 hours,
7 days a week.
Do not discontinue taking any medications without first consulting your physician.
This article is for informational purposes only. It is not intended to constitute
medical advice and should not be viewed as such. For medical advice, you should
always consult with your physician.
Arava ® is a registered trademark of Aventis Pharmaceuticals Inc. The reference
to the registered trademarks of Aventis Pharmaceuticals Inc. is used here only for
the purpose of identifying the product in question.
This law firm is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or associated with Aventis Pharmaceuticals
Inc., the FDA, the European Medicines Evaluation Agency, or Public Citizen.