Homeopathic Medicine Company - Matrixx Initiatives Fends of Lawsuits

Consumers across the USA have alleged in more than four hundred lawsuits filed in courts and complaints logged with federal regulators that Zicam nasal gel, meant to treat cold symptoms, has destroyed or diminished their sense of smell or taste.Some consumers and experts say the controversy shows there hole in the government's oversight of homeopathic products such as Zicam.

Zicam's manufacturer, Phoenix-based Matrixx Initiatives, says its Zicam homeopathic medicine products are safe and that it has research to back it up.

Matrixx settled a batch of almost three hundred fifty lawsuits for twelve million dollars in January 2006, court and SEC documents show. The company did not admit negligence. Since then, Matrixx has fought off more lawsuits using a panel of medical experts and piles of scientific evidence.

Matrixx representatives say the controversy over Zicam boils down to one Colorado doctor, who first publicly linked Zicam to smell loss, and "ambulance chaser" lawyers out to make a quick dollar. Since September 2006, 6 federal courts have tossed out expert testimony from the doctor, Bruce Jafek, a University of Colorado School of Medicine ear, nose and throat specialist.