ACCOLATE
Generic name:  Zafirlukast
Date Approved:  September 1996
Manufacturer:  Zeneca Pharmaceuticals
Approved Uses:  Asthma

Serious Side Effects:
Abdominal pain
Nausea
Fatigue
Flu-like symptoms
Anorexia
Liver failure or Hepatic failure

Accolate (Zafirlukast) was approved by the FDA in September of 1996 to treat chronic asthma.  Accolate was prescribed to 250,000 patients in the U.S. after only 10 months on the market.  Zeneca Pharmaceuticals, the manufacturer of Accolate, informed healthcare professionals that rare cases of eosinophilia, worsening pulmonary symptoms, vasculitic rash, cardiac complications, and neuropathy sometimes presented as Churg Strauss Syndrome were to be included on the Precautions and Adverse Reactions sections of the insert package for the drug on July 22, 1997. 

Certain side effects including rare cases of life-threatening hepatic liver failure began to be reported in 2000.  People taking Accolate that are experiencing symptoms such as right upper quadrant abdominal pain, nausea, fatigue, itchiness, yellowish staining of skin, abnormal drowsiness, flu-like symptoms, anorexia, and enlarged liver should stop taking the drug immediately and seek medical attention as these symptoms often indicate liver dysfunction.  Women taking Accolate should have their blood tested regularly because they have a more elevated risk of liver damage. 

If you or a loved one has suffered any of these adverse side effects as a result of Accolate please contact Keller & Keller LLP to learn about your legal rights and receive free consultation.

James R. Keller
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