Weider Avoids Monetary Damages In Kansas Ephedra Injury Lawsuit

A Kansas jury declined to assess damages against Weider Nutrition International on claims the firm's Ripped Force ephedrine alkaloid-containing drink caused a body builder's cardiac arrest three years ago.

In a May 31 verdict, Wichita jurors concluded plaintiff Shane Garrett and defendant Weider Nutrition were each 50% at fault. Pursuant to the court's instructions on liability apportionment, the jurors did not award monetary damages.

With no monetary penalty levied, the decision amounts to a defense verdict for Weider, which disputed the contention that Ripped Force caused 22-year-old Garrett to collapse while lifting weights at Genesis Health Club on March 30, 1998.

Garrett's case was submitted through FDA's MedWatch program and was chronicled by University of California-San Francisco researchers Christine Haller, MD, and Neal Benowitz, MD, in a Dec. 21 New England Journal of Medicine article reviewing adverse cardiovascular and central nervous system events associated with supplements containing ephedrine alkaloids (¹ (Also see "Ephedra Cardiovascular Side Effects "Minimal" - Columbia/Harvard Study" - Pink Sheet, 13 Nov, 2000.)).

Garrett was "Patient 2" in the NEJM report; Haller and Benowitz classified the case as "definitely or probably related to the use" of ephedrine alkaloid-containing supplements.

The plaintiff's history of asthma could have been a complicating factor, though. His Rx medications included Theo-Dur (theophylline), Ventolin (albuterol) and Atrohist Plus SR (chlorpheniramine maleate, phenylephrine hydrochloride and phenylpropanolamine).

The lawsuit alleged that prior to his workout on the day he collapsed, Garrett consumed one bottle of Ripped Force containing 20 mg ephedrine alkaloids, 100 mg caffeine, 250 mg L-carnitine and 200 mcg chromium picolinate.

However, whether Garrett actually drank the product, and if so for how long and how much of it he drank, was disputed at trial by Weider.

Garrett suffered a seizure and ventricular fibrillation, as well as anoxia for 13 to 15 minutes. He had to be resuscitated and was comatose for two weeks, suffering brain damage and permanent disability, the plaintiff alleged.

A contract lab analysis of Garrett's urine revealed ephedrine 12 mcg/mL, pseudoephedrine .38 mcg/mL, methylephedrine 22 ng/mL and PPA.

Weider contended there were problems with the chain of custody of the urine specimens analyzed, although the company said this was not an issue at trial.

Garrett sued Weider, alleging design defect and inadequate product warnings. He also sued Genesis, where he allegedly bought the drink, but voluntarily dismissed the gym from the lawsuit several months before trial.

The plaintiff sought between $5 mil. and $6.5 mil. in compensatory damages at trial, according to Weider.

Trial started May 8 before Sedgwick County Court Judge Tom Malone. At trial, Weider argued the product warning sufficiently advised individuals using prescription drugs to consult a physician before use.

The Ripped Force warning at issue stated, in part: "Seek advice from a health care practitioner prior to use if you are pregnant or nursing, or if you have high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, difficulty in urination due to prostate enlargement, or if taking an MAO inhibitor or any other prescription drug."

The supplement manufacturer also maintained Garrett suffered from underlying cardiac problems and pointed to potential cardiac side effects of the three asthma medications he was using.

Weider is facing three other personal injury lawsuits related to its ephedrine alkaloid-containing products. A suit in Arizona has been tentatively settled and cases in Delaware and Nevada are in their initial phases, the firm said.

The Garrett action is believed to be only the second personal injury lawsuit related to ephedrine alkaloid-containing supplements to reach a verdict.

In February, an Alaska state court jury awarded $13.3 mil. to a woman who claimed her stroke was caused by E'Ola Products' AMP II Pro Drops supplement containing ephedrine alkaloids. The Alaska case was initially found in favor of the defense in 1998, but the judge ordered a retrial. E'Ola is appealing the verdict (² (Also see "E'Ola Appealing $13.3 Mil. Ephedrine Supplement Verdict" - Pink Sheet, 12 Feb, 2001.)).