An appeals court excluded testimony from an expert witness who sought to show that Roche’s Accutane acne med causes a chronic bowel disorder. Lawyers for plaintiffs contended the expert witness was central to their case, while the drugmaker argued Accutane is not connected to the disease and the expert made “leaps of faith” in trying to track a connection between the two. (The ruling).

The lawsuit was filed in August 2003 by Justin Rand, who alleged Accutane caused his inflammatory bowel disease. Eight other lawsuits were consolidated into one case in November 2004 and each asks a jury to award unspecified damages. Their case hinged on testimony from Ronald Fogel, a Michigan gastroenterologist who was the chief expert witness for the plaintiffs. He championed tests he hoped would establish a “reliable foundation” linking the drug and the disease.

The case is the latest in a wave of lawsuits that accuse Roche of downplaying a link between Accutane and inflammatory bowel disease. Plaintiffs lawyers have already won a trio of multi-million dollar jury awards, and they say they have hundreds of other patients with similar cases. (Back story).

Hat tip to Drug and Device Law blog