What is Dostinex (Cabergoline)?

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Dostinex, known generically as Cabergoline, is a prescription drug sometimes used in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease. Parkinson’s disease is a neurological condition resulting from the degeneration of neurons in the area of the brain controlling movement. This degeneration of neurons reduces the amount of the chemical dopamine in the brain, which causes the poor motor control associated with Parkinson’s disease. Dostinex has some of the same effects as dopamine on the brain, allowing the medication to improve the poor muscle control, tremors, and stiffness of Parkinson’s disease. Studies estimate that close to 6 million people worldwide suffer from Parkinson’s disease.

Dostinex is manufactured by Pfizer Inc., one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world. The medication was approved on December 23, 1996 by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in the treatment of a hormonal disorder called hyperprolactinemia. Although Dostinex and Cabergoline are used for treating Parkinson’s disease in other countries, it has not been approved for that use in the United States. In 2005, sales of Dostinex in the United States totaled close to $88 million dollars and around 87,000 prescriptions for the drug were written.

There seem to be many side effects associated with the use of Dostinex, with 79% of Dostinex users reporting at least one of the side effects experienced. The most common side effects are as follows:

• 30% of patients experienced nausea
• 27% of patients experienced vertigo
• 22% of patients reported obstipation
• 18% of patients experienced somnolence
• 13% of patients reported depression
• 10% of patients reported dry mouth
• 7% of patients reported gastric irritation
• 4.3% of patients experienced palpitations
• 4% of patients experienced hallucinations
• 1.4% of patients experienced angina pectoris

The side effects experienced were usually mild to moderate. About 15% of patients stopped taking the medication due to the severity of the side effects. Dostinex has also been linked to various types of heart disease, mainly valvular heart disease.

Two studies detailing the association between Dostinex and heart valve disease were released in January of 2007. The clinical trials were conducted by Italian and German doctors. Researchers conducting the Italian study found that about one-fourth of the patients taking Dostinex had moderate to severe heart valve damage, while the study by German researchers established that individuals taking Dostinex were up to seven times more likely to have leaky heart valves than those on other Parkinson’s medications. These numbers indicate a very high risk for a severe side effect. This type of damage cannot be reversed by medication and some of the affected patients required surgery to repair or replace the damaged heart valves.

The FDA has not issued a recall for Dostinex or Cabergoline because the medications are not approved for use in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease in the United States. Its approved use in the treatment of the hormonal disorder, hyperprolactinemia, requires the dosage to be up to 40 times lower than the dosage required in the treatment of Parkinson’s disease. This lower dosage is considered to be well below the amount required to adversely affect the heart valves, so a recall is not warranted. However, people who have taken the higher dosage of Dostinex or Cabergoline during treatment for Parkinson’s disease are still at risk and should alert their medical professional immediately if any adverse effects are experienced.

Do I have a Dostinex Lawsuit?

The Defective Drug Litigation Group at our law firm is an experienced team of trial lawyers that focus exclusively on the representation of plaintiffs in Dostinex and Cabergoline lawsuits. We are handling individual litigation nationwide and currently accepting new Dostinex cases in all 50 states.

Attention Attorneys: We do not publish prior verdict/settlements. If you are an attorney and would like to refer us a case or for us to send you a profile of prior award judgments or average referral fees, please visit the attorney referral section of our website.

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