Sugar Land resident sued over heartburn meds

Harris County residents are suing a Sugar Land resident and a pharmaceutical company over claims the heartburn medicine Nexium caused their bones to break.

Mary Nguyen and Tuoc Duong filed a lawsuit on Sept. 15 in the Harris County District Court against Astrazeneca Pharmaceuticals and pharmaceutical representative Ghadeer Rafeedie, of Sugar Land, citing negligence, negligent misrepresentation, fraud and violations of the Deceptive Trade Practices Act.

The plaintiffs say they suffered unexpected bone fractures and bone deterioration after taking the heartburn medication Nexium.

According to the brief, the defendants failed to warn the plaintiffs of the risks involved with taking the drug, which is known to prevent calcium absorption, which causes bone deterioration and bone fractures.

The plaintiffs are seeking actual and exemplary damages, as well as court costs. They are being represented in the case by Houston attorney Tammy Tran.

Harris County District Court Case No. 2011-55281.

This is a report on a civil lawsuit filed at the Harris County Courthouse. The details in this report come from an original complaint filed by a plaintiff. Please note, a complaint represents an accusation by a private individual, not the government. It is not an indication of guilt, and it only represents one side of the story.