Zicam Lawyer and Lawsuit News Regarding Loss of Smell

Shareholder lawsuit against maker of Zicam reinstated

This lawsuit may or may reveal some of what Matrixx knew about the potential for its products to cause anosmia.

But appellate Judge A. Wallace Tashima said that inferences that Matrixx intentionally or deliberately withheld information about the link between Zicam and anosmia - the inability to perceive smells - "is at least as compelling as any plausible nonculpable explanation."

Source: Appeals court reinstates Zicam lawsuit | Health | eastvalleytribune.com

AND, Zicam may infringe on another company’s patent

As if Matrixx wasn’t having enough trouble with all of the lawsuits that allege Zicam causes loss of smell, they’ve been dealt a setback in a patent infringement lawsuit:

The U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware has ruled that Capricorn Pharma, Inc. can proceed with its suit against Matrixx Initiatives Inc. for allegedly infringing Capricorn's patent covering Zicam®, a cold medication. The patent-in-suit, U.S. Patent No. 6,375,982, covers rapid semi-solid compositions and methods of making such compositions. In its complaint, Capricon alleges that Matrixx infringed the '982 patent following the expiration of a manufacturing agreement between the two companies, under which Capricorn had used its proprietary technology to manufacture RapidMelt® disintegrating tablets that would be sold under the Zicam® brand by Matrixx. At the time, Matrixx had knowledge of the technology, and Capricorn has alleged that Matrixx was bound by non-disclosure terms in the agreement not to disclose this technology. However, after the agreement was executed, Matrixx, through Zicam® LLC, filed two provisional patent applications which, according to Capricorn, contained its proprietary and confidential information

Source: Patent Docs: Biotech/Pharma Docket

Will Zicam Return To The Market Unchanged?

Apparently, the makers of Zicam have no interest in bringing the product back on the market with a new formula:

According to StreetInsider.com, the recalled Zicam products accounted for 40 percent of the company’s sales. The recall has also hurt demand for other Zicam products, such as melting tablets and liquids, which were not subject to the FDA warning. So it would make sense that Matrixx would want to return the recalled Zicam products to the market as soon as possible, and reassure consumers about the safety of all remedies sold under the Zicam name.

Since the recall, rumors have swirled that Matrixx was considering reformulating nasal version of Zicam. According to StreetInsider.com, shares of Matrixx have jumped every time this rumor has surface.

But a company spokesperson told StreetInsider.com that Matrixx has absolutely no intention of reformulating recalled Zicam products. Instead, the company is hoping to reach an agreement with the FDA that would allow recalled versions of Zicam back on the market. According to the report, no such agreement has been reached so far.

Source: “Reformulated” Zicam Won’t Replace Recalled Nasal Cold Remedies

New York Times Covers the Zicam Recall

And it notes that the FDA has begun to be more proactive in protecting consumers than it had in the past.

The Food and Drug Administration received 130 reports from consumers and doctors of people losing their sense of smell after using one of the Zicam nasal products, which include Zicam Cold Remedy and Zicam Cold Remedy Swabs. The reports date to 1999, when Matrixx Initiatives of Scottsdale, Ariz., first introduced the products.

In 2006, Matrixx paid $12 million to settle 340 lawsuits from Zicam users who claimed that the product destroyed their sense of smell, a condition known as anosmia. Hundreds more such suits have since been filed.

Although the F.D.A. took no action during the Bush administration, Dr. Margaret A. Hamburg, who was named the agency commissioner by President Obama, said the incidence of anosmia associated with Zicam “strikes us as a fairly large problem.”

Source: F.D.A. Warns Against Use of Zicam - NYTimes.com