Pfizer Pharmaceuticals first developed Neurontin to treat seizures in epileptic patients, and was approved for such use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration ("FDA") in 1993. Several years later, the FDA also approved Neurontin for the treatment of postherpetic neuralgia, or the rash that results from shingles. After a number of consumers reported a substantial increase in the incidence in suicidal thoughts and behaviors after taking Neurontin, the FDA issued a warning in 2008 regarding the potential for suicidality in patients treated with Neurontin. The increased rate of suicidal thoughts and behaviors brought about by patients treated with a Neurontin dose resulted in many lawsuits across America, alleging that Pfizer failed to adequately warn consumers of this risk in developing and marketing Neurontin. Although Pfizer denied any responsibility or wrongdoing, its subsidiary pharmaceutical company ultimately altered its labeling to include the risk of suicidality in taking the drug, and paid more than $430 million in damages in order to avoid criminal and civil liability for illegally and fraudulently promoting Neurontin for off-label purposes.