Tepezza Manufacturer Faces New Irreversible Hearing Damage Lawsuit
Yet another lawsuit has been brought against the makers of the thyroid eye disease (TED) medication Tepezza, alleging that the manufacturer failed to provide consumers and healthcare providers with warnings about the risk of permanent hearing damage from Tepezza treatment. The lawsuit was filed earlier this month in Illinois, by a former Tepezza user who says she suffered irreversible hearing loss and tinnitus after receiving Tepezza infusions for thyroid eye disease and Graves disease. If you or someone you love has suffered permanent and irreversible hearing damage allegedly caused by Tepezza treatment, contact Consumer Safety Watch immediately. We can help you determine whether you may be eligible to pursue compensation from Horizon Therapeutics for the injuries you have suffered.
What is Tepezza?
Tepezza (teprotumumab-trbw) is an insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor (IGF-IR) inhibitor approved in January 2020 as a treatment for bulging eyes, double vision, redness, eye pain, and swelling associated with thyroid eye disease (TED). TED is a serious eye disorder that causes inflammation and damage to the tissues behind the eye, including the muscles, connective tissue, and fatty tissue. TED is often associated with Graves disease, an autoimmune disorder characterized by overactivity of the thyroid, which causes bulging eyes and other symptoms. Tepezza is administered in eight infusions, with infusions given once every three weeks. The medication was introduced just three years ago as the first medication approved to treat TED, and already, hundreds of users have come forward with complaints about hearing loss, tinnitus, and other serious hearing problems allegedly associated with Tepezza.
Tepezza Hearing Loss Lawsuits
Horizon faces a growing number of lawsuits alleging that Tepezza causes irreversible hearing damage in users. These Tepezza lawsuits claim that the manufacturer knew or should have known before Tepezza was ever introduced that the infusion could leave patients with permanent hearing problems. In this latest Tepezza hearing loss lawsuit, California resident Norma Perez Diaz alleges that she could have avoided suffering permanent hearing loss had Horizon Therapeutics properly notified consumers and healthcare professionals about the importance of audiology testing before and during Tepezza treatment. However, the manufacturer is accused of aggressively marketing Tepezza as a safe and effective treatment for thyroid eye disease without disclosing the risk of hearing damage associated with the medication, which allegedly caused Diaz to experience permanent hearing damage and tinnitus.
According to Diaz’s claim, which was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois on February 14, she was diagnosed with thyroid eye disease and Graves’ disease and received Tepezza infusions from November 2021 through April 2022. During that time, neither she nor her physician was warned about any hearing-related issues associated with Tepezza treatment. “Plaintiff and Plaintiff’s physicians were given no warning and had no knowledge of the serious risk of permanent hearing loss and/or tinnitus Tepezza posed,” Diaz’s lawsuit states. “Specifically… there is no warning or indication that Tepezza can, and in fact does, cause permanent hearing damage. Nor are physicians directed by Defendant to conduct baseline audiology testing before treatment with Tepezza, or monitor hearing acuity during treatment.” Diaz claims in her Tepezza lawsuit that Horizon knew or should have known that “Tepezza, when used as prescribed and intended, causes harmful hearing loss and other symptoms including tinnitus.”
What to Do if You Have Suffered Hearing Damage from Tepezza
Like Norma Perez Diaz, hundreds of other Tepezza users have reported experiencing hearing loss, tinnitus, deafness, and other irreversible hearing problems after receiving Tepezza infusions. Horizon Therapeutics is expected to face dozens if not hundreds of additional claims in the coming months and years, as former Tepezza users learn about the potential for the TED treatment to cause hearing damage. Unfortunately, the hearing damage linked to Tepezza has been reported to persist long after the infusions are discontinued and may be permanent and irreversible, which means affected patients may never regain their hearing. If you have experienced a hearing problem like hearing loss or tinnitus, and you received one or more Tepezza infusions, do not hesitate to speak to a Tepezza injury attorney. You may be entitled to financial compensation for your injuries, which an experienced Tepezza attorney can help you pursue.
