Women who take the HIV medication Tivicay (dolutegravir) during pregnancy are more likely to have a baby with a serious birth defect, according to a recent study of women in Botswana.
What You Can Do & How We Can Help
The Schmidt Firm, PLLC is currently accepting Triumeq induced injury cases in all 50 states. If your baby was born with spina bifida or other birth defects from Triumeq, you should contact our lawyers immediately for a free case consultation. Please use the form below to contact our Defective Drug Litigation Group or call toll free 24 hours a day at (866) 920-0753.
What is the problem?
Tivicayare has been associated with birth defects when pregnant women take it during the first trimester or just before getting pregnant. It is linked to neural tube birth defects, such as spina bifida, which can cause paralysis, disability or defect of the brain, spine, or spinal cord.
Dolutegravir is an ingredient in Triumeq, Tivicay, and Juluca.
Triumeq Birth Defects
The study linking Triumeq and birth defects did not find an increased risk when it was taken after the first three months of pregnancy. Neural tube birth defects occur in the first 4 weeks of fetal development when the spinal column fails to close, which allows amniotic fluid to cause permanent nerve damage to the spinal cord.
What is Triumeq?
Triumeq® is a once-daily pill that helps prevent the HIV virus from multiplying, which helps lower the amount of HIV in the body. Triumeq contains a combination of dolutegravir, abacavir, and lamivudine. It is manufactured by Viiv Healthcare and GlaxoSmithKline and was approved in the U.S. in August 2014.
FDA Warning for Triumeq Birth Defects
In May 2018, the FDA published a Safety Communication to warn women about the risk of serious neural tube birth defects from Triumeq.
The FDA asked women of childbearing age to use birth control to avoid pregnancy, or switch to another HIV medication that does not contain dolutegravir.
“Neural tube defects happen early in pregnancy, before many women even know they are pregnant. For this reason, women of childbearing age should talk to their health care professional about other non-dolutegravir-containing antiretroviral medicines.”
Neural Tube Birth Defects
The most common neural tube birth defect is spina bifida. Babies who are born with neural tube defects may suffer from paralysis, incontinence, under-development of the brain or spinal cord, severe disabilities, or health problems that result in death.
List of Neural Tube Birth Defects
- Spina bifida
- Meningocele
- Myelomeningocele
- Anencephaly
- Encephalocele
- Iniencephaly
Do I have a Triumeq Lawsuit?
The Schmidt Firm, PLLC is currently accepting Triumeq induced injury cases in all 50 states. If your baby was born with spina bifida or other birth defects from Triumeq, you should contact our lawyers immediately for a free case consultation. Please use the form below to contact our Defective Drug Litigation Group or call toll free 24 hours a day at (866) 920-0753.
Attention Lawyers: We consider a referral from another law firm to be one of the greatest compliments. If your firm is interested in referring us a case or for us to send you a list of previous award judgments and/or average referral fees, please visit the Lawyer Referral section of our website.
The Schmidt Firm, PLLC has been recognized as one of the nation’s leading plaintiffs' law firms and handles cases in all 50 states. We are very proud of our legal achievements, but equally self-respecting of our firm's reputation for providing personal attention to each and every client we represent.
