Norfolk, VA Personal Injury Lawyer Info: Emergency Room Visits Linked to Muscle Relaxant Soar

Emergency rooms form misusing the prescription muscle relaxant carisoprodol (Soma from Meda Parmaceuticals) increased from 15,830 to 31,763 between 2004 and 2009, according to a new report from the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. Carisoprodol becomes epecially dangerous when taken in combination with narcotic painkillers and illegal drugs or alcohol, according to its labeling.

"We're not talking about an epidemic, but we are talking about a larger number of people ending up in the ER with misuse of this medication," Peter Delany, director of SAMHSA's Center for Behavioral Health Statistics and Quality, told USA Today.

This video describes carisoprodol:

As experienced Virginia (VA) dangerous drugs attorneys, my colleagues and I are concerned about this surge in emergency room visits linked to carisoprodol misuse and abuse. When a drug has dangerous side effects, it raises the concern that the medication can be wrongly prescribed.

Another drug to come under scrutiny recently is Sanofi-Aventis' Multaq (dronedarone), which is prescribed to treat atrial fibrillation and other heart rhythm disorders. Multaq has been linked to serious liver damage. To find out more about dangerous drugs and legal claims by injured patients, check out this article.

DM