The makers of antipsychotic drugs Risperdal and Invega are facing a series of lawsuits after boys taking the drugs grew breasts as large as ‘D’ cups.

The patients who were prescribed the antipsychotics for conditions ranging from attention deficit disorder to Tourette syndrome and disruptive behavior, experienced quick weight gain and breast growth to the tune of a size 38D, in some cases, the lawsuits say.

Because of the weight gain, the boys’ lawyer says their doctors may have overlooked the seriousness of the breast growth. Now many of the boys will require surgical breast removal.

The lawsuits accuse the manufacturers of Risperdal and Invega of negligence and fraud and say that the companies did too little to make people aware of the drugs’ potential side effects.

Risperdal is approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat autism in addition to schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. Invega, a similar drug, is approved for the treatment of schizophrenia.

A notation was added to the Risperdal product information on the manufacturer’s Web site in 2006 to suggest that breast growth has occurred in some boys who took it, reports the Philadelphia Inquirer.

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