Actavis Totowa heart drug Digitek might have contained excess amounts of digoxin which increases risk of digitalis toxicity.

Investigation and potential class action lawsuit against Actavis Totowa, a pharmaceutical company that manufactures and distributes Digitek.

Digitek is a heart drug that negligently contained dangerously excessive doses of the drug's active ingredient, digoxin, causing life-threatening adverse drug reactions. Digitek is typically prescribed to treat irregular heartbeat or heart failure.

The lawsuit filed in the wake of an FDA Digitek recall, alleges defective Digitek contained amounts of digoxin exceeding the dose set forth on the label and in some cases exceeding the dose approved for medical treatment in humans. This litigation, brought by a Talladega woman and her husband, alleges defective Digitek pills caused her to suffer digitalis toxicity, a sometimes lethal reaction to an overdose of digoxin. The suit claims the victim's adverse reaction included a drop in heart rate into the low 30's, blindness, confusion and incoherent speech. The suit claims the woman was hospitalized for more than one month and underwent surgery to implant an artificial heart pacemaker to treat permanent heart damage believed to be caused by Digitek overdose. The victim's injury occurred only a few weeks prior to April 25, 2008 when the FDA announced a nationwide recall of all Digitek tablets because of the potential that the tablets were double the appropriate thickness and contained up to twice the approved level of the active ingredient.

The suit claims the victim was prescribed Digitek and unwittingly ingested defective tablets that contained harmfully high levels of the active ingredient.

The suit charges the drug maker knew or should have known about the manufacturing and production defects and that the recalled Digitek was adulterated misbranded, defective, unreasonably dangerous and unfit for its intended uses.

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