Tylenol Liver Damage Attorney

Tylenol Liver Damage News

FDA Scrutinizes Acetaminophen's
Liver Risk

ABC News - Dan Childs - ‎5 hours ago‎
Acetaminophen -- widely known by the brand name Tylenol -- is a subject of FDA scrutiny today as regulators explore the risk of liver failure ...

FDA Scrutinizes Painkillers

WCPO - Suzanne Murray - ‎1 hour ago‎
Three popular over-the-counter painkillers will be under the microscope this week in the government's effort to reduce overdoses. ...

Acetaminophen Worries: The End of NyQuil as We Know It?

Wall Street Journal Blogs - Jacob Goldstein - ‎3 hours ago‎
The Obama-era FDA is pushing hard on safety issues for over-the-counter drugs — witness the recent Zicam dustup and stronger safety ...

Why do these companies care so much?

Even though Tylenol and Advil went generic long ago, the brand equity they provide is still vital to both companies. Tylenol is one of the best-known brands in J&J's consumer-products basket, which has provided a major cushion in a rough economy. While J&J's prescription-drug and medical-device units have stagnated of late, its consumer business has been growing about 10% year-over-year. Consumer products accounted for $16 billion of the company's $64 billion in sales last year. (The company does not break out Tylenol sales.)

J&J's consistent leadership on drugstore shelves has helped its stock weather the recession better than that of some of its pure-play competitors: J&J's stock has fallen only 3% this year, while consumer giant Procter & Gamble (PG) has dropped 14%, and prescription drugmaker Pfizer has lost 13%.

Pfizer is now trying to be less of a pure play, which is why it announced in January that it would buy Wyeth for $68 billion. Advil is one of the crown jewels in that purchase, with sales of $673 million in 2008. In 2006, Wyeth introduced Advil PM, a direct competitor to the similarly named Tylenol PM. Both pain drugs contain a sleep medication. Sales of Advil PM rose a remarkable 17% in 2008, after Wyeth advertised the drug heavily on television. Advil PM was the fastest growing product for Wyeth Consumer Healthcare, the unit that accounted for 12% of the company's $22.8 billion in sales last year.

BusinessWeek