Area Man's Motrin Lawsuit Goes Forward

A man who lives in the Santa Monica/Venice area is proceeding with a product liability-lawsuit that alleges taking Motrin caused his skin to peel off his body.

On Wednesday, jury selection began for the trial in the suit. Prospective panel members received a questionnaire during the preliminary juror screening, with the final stage of jury selection slated for Monday. The trial will take place in a Los Angeles civil courthouse and is anticipated to last 25 to 40 days.

Christopher Trejo, a 22-year-old Honduran citizen who legally resides in the U.S., filed the suit in September 2008. The suit names Johnson & Johnson, the McKesson Corp. and McNeil Consumer Healthcare. Motrin is manufactured, sold and distributed by McNeil, of which Johnson & Johnson is the parent company. McKesson distributed the drug in California.

After coming down with a fever in Honduras in late 2005, Trejo bought and started using Motrin in the U.S. The aspiring pediatrician, whose father is a doctor, had been in good health, according to his court papers.

He "carefully read the label on the drug's bottle for any warnings and adverse side effects," the suit states. "Relying on the drug's label, Christopher continued taking the medication as instructed."

Four days later, Trejo felt bloody bumps in his mouth and his eyes became red. He was then admitted to a hospital and diagnosed with Stevens Johnson Syndrome. The disease, which is life-threatening, attacks internal and external organs including the dermatologic, digestive, neurological, skeletal and visual systems.

A day after going to the hospital, skin lesions spread from his mouth and face to his abdomen and genitals, and blisters eventually covered more than half his body. At that point, his illness was reclassified to toxic epidermal necrolysis, which is more severe.

"By the fourth day of hospitalization, 100 percent of Christopher's body surface was damaged as his skin began to literally detach from all over his body, including the bottoms of his feet, the palms of his hands and his fingernails," the suit alleges. "The extent of skin involvement was captured in photographs taken during his hospitalization and can best be described as snapshots directly out of hell."

Trejo, who contends that he will continue to suffer physically and psychologically for the rest of his life, wants compensatory and punitive damages. He says the defendants, in purposely not putting Motrin's known risks on its bottle labels, placed an "emphasis on corporate profits at the expense of the health and safety of consumers."

"Motrin has been proven safe and effective for the treatment of minor aches and pains and fever when used as directed, and the medicine is labeled appropriately," McNeil Consumer Healthcare spokeswoman Bonnie Jacobs said. "We strongly recommend consumers read the product label for dosing information and warnings and talk with their health care professional if they have any questions or concerns."

City News Service contributed to this report.