Tylenol Lawsuit Revival Ignores Persistent Evidence Gaps on Acetaminophen and Autism

The Factum's claim in 'Appeals Court Revives Over 500 Tylenol Autism Lawsuits Against Kenvue' that the ruling 'highlights' prenatal risks rests on shaky ground. The underlying observational studies suffer from confounding by indication and recall bias, as noted in a 2024 review in Nature Reviews Neurology that found no consistent dose-response relationship after adjusting for maternal fever and genetics. A large 2022 Swedish sibling-control study in JAMA (Ahlqvist et al.) reported hazard ratios near 1.0 for neurodevelopmental outcomes once familial factors were accounted for, directly contradicting the expert testimony cited in the appeals decision. Regulatory bodies including the EMA's 2023 pharmacovigilance assessment continue to classify the evidence as insufficient for causal conclusions.