Risperdal is a type of medication classified as an atypical antipsychotic. Typically, Risperdal is used to treat patients diagnosed with schizophrenia and Bipolar Disorder I, which causes extreme mood swings, alternating between mania and depression. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration ("FDA") approved Risperdal for these uses in 1993, but by 2005, the FDA issued a warning that patients who took Risperdal, and particularly older patients prescribed a Risperdal dosage for dementia symptoms (an unapproved use of the drug), were at a greater risk of death than those patients who were not prescribed Risperdal. Generally, taking Risperdal puts patients at a higher risk for developing serious medical conditions that could lead to death, including Neuroleptic Malignant Syndrome, Tardive Dyskinesia, diabetes, and stroke. As a result of these side effects, many of which resulted from off-label prescriptions for Risperdal, there have been many lawsuits filed against Risperdal's manufacturer for failing to warn of the drug's potentially serious and even fatal consequences.