Personal Injury

August 22, 2009

Popcorn Workers Lung – Bronchiolitis Obliterans

Bronchiolitis Obliterans also known as Popcorn Workers Lung, is an obstructive lung disease in which the bronchioles of the lungs are blocked by the growth of fibrous tissue.

The moniker Popcorn Workers Lung has been given to Bronchiolitis Obliterans because workers in factories that make microwavable popcorn that uses diacetyl for the buttery flavoring are known to contract the disease. The disease is irreversible, and can become so severe that a lung transplant may be necessary. Popcorn Workers Lung is a rare disorder that is known to be caused by repeated exposure to toxic gases, namely diacetyl.

August 22, 2009

Yaz Lawsuit

by Dr. Shezad Malik

Yaz and Yasmin are popular and widely-used oral contraceptives targeting women with the promises of worry free contraception. But there is potentially life threatening Yasmin side effects and Yaz side effects.Yaz was recently targeted by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as a prescription drug that is more dangerous and less effective than advertised by Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals.

In mid-August 2009, the results of two new studies of oral contraceptives, including Yaz and Yasmin, were released in the British Medical Journal Online. The studies showed that Yaz, Yasmin and the generic form of Yaz, Ocella, caused a six-fold increase in the risk of blood clots, which cause injuries such as Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) and Pulmonary Embolism (PE).

August 22, 2009

FDA Cracks Down on Ibuprofen Pain Relief Gels

by Dr. Shezad Malik

The Food and Drug Administration has issued warnings to eight companies for illegally marketing pain relief ointments containing ibuprofen.

Regulators said in a statement Thursday the companies do not have federal permission to market their products, which mix the popular pain relief drug with other ingredients. While ibuprofen is available in a variety of tablets like Advil, the FDA has not approved any ointments containing the drug.

“These companies have an obligation to demonstrate to the FDA that their products are safe and effective, and they have failed to do so,” said Deborah Autor, director of FDA’s office of compliance.

August 22, 2009

Mud on Road Caused Car Crash, Paralyzing Driver

by Dr. Shezad Malik

On June 26, 2007, at about 5:30 p.m., plaintiff Brian Moore, 19, a college student, hit a tree after he lost control of his sedan heading east on Peach Road in Fairfield County, South Carolina.

Moore alleged that he saw a clump of mud near the road’s shoulder and tried to avoid it, but he couldn’t, causing him to spin out of control and force him off the road. He was able to return to the road but overcorrected the vehicle which then yawed (when the vehicle’s wheels are turned but the vehicle is also sliding sideways) 180 degrees and swerved through the oncoming lane and crashed into a tree with the passenger rear corner panel. Moore was paralyzed in the crash.

The road was being widened–2-foot paved shoulders were being added–and resurfaced by Boggs Paving Inc. under a contract with the state Department of Transportation. Boggs was putting down dirt that day to dress the shoulders, but the work was interrupted by a summer thunderstorm. Moore claimed that the road was contaminated with mud that had washed from the shoulders which resulted in his losing control of his vehicle.

August 22, 2009

Yaz and Yasmin: Birth Control Pill Has Caused Patient Deaths, Heart Attack, and Stroke

by Dr. Shezad Malik

Yasmin is an oral contraceptive pill made by Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals, Inc. that has been linked to heart attack, stroke, and blood clots in users. Women taking the drug to prevent pregnancy or to treat emotional and physical symptoms of PMDD (Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder) and moderate acne have suffered severe injuries and even died as a result.

The drug has been linked to 50 or more deaths in the United States between 2004 and 2008 in addition to many other injuries. Bayer has been named in numerous lawsuits filed on behalf of women who were injured or died as a result of taking Yasmin.

Yasmin was approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2006. A lower-dose version of the same drug, called Yaz, was approved in 2001. Yasmin is essentially the same drug as Yaz and uses a different kind of hormone than other birth-control pills, a drug called DRSP (drospirenone). DRSP has been shown to increase potassium in the body, which raises the possibility of severe health complications for women with kidney (renal) disease and cardiovascular conditions.

August 21, 2009

Diacetyl Induced Popcorn Workers Lung

by Dr. Shezad Malik

Dozens of workers around the country have developed the debilitating lung disease bronchiolitis obliterans, also known as “popcorn workers lung,” and other respiratory illnesses from exposure to vapors from diacetyl, a component of artificial butter flavor used in microwave popcorn and many other food products.

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) conducted several studies that confirmed the link between occupational exposure to artificial butter flavoring and lung diseases. In 2000 they issued recommendations to a Missouri microwave popcorn plant about protecting workers from this hazard, and in 2003 they sent an alert recommending safeguards to 4,000 businesses that might use or make butter flavoring.

August 21, 2009

Avandia Risk of Heart Failure and Lawsuits

by Dr. Shezad Malik

If you believe you may have been harmed by the use of Avandia, it is important to note that your time to file a lawsuit against the maker of the drug could be running out. The statute of limitations in many states is coming up soon, and there still may be people who do not realize that the injury they have suffered could be related to their Avandia use.

New research shows that diabetics treated with the popular drug Avandia have higher risk of heart failure and death than those taking Actos, leading Canadian scientists to conclude that “continued use of [Avandia] may not be justified.”

The findings, published in today’s edition of the British Medical Journal, are the latest blow to the controversial blockbuster drug, manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline Inc.

Researchers stressed that the findings are relative and that Actos, a product of Takeda Pharmaceuticals North America Inc., also poses heart risks, albeit lesser ones.

August 21, 2009

Wastewater From MI Food Plants Getting Into Home Water Wells

by Dr. Shezad Malik

When Kari and Ron Craton moved a few years ago to a more rural area of southwestern Michigan, they were seeking a more rustic life. What they got was more rust.

Government officials say food-processing plants that turn raw crops into products have contaminated the water-supply wells of the Cratons and other property owners in agricultural areas of Michigan and could do the same in other states. Residents claim increased amounts of metals in water drawn from their wells have killed their pets, ruined their plumbing and made their houses impossible to sell or rent.

August 21, 2009

Gadolinium Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis (MRI Dye) and Lawsuits

by Dr. Shezad Malik

A dye used in MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) and MRA (magnetic resonance angiography) scans has been linked to a rare and potentially fatal skin disease in some users.

The problem stems from the metal gadolinium found in the dyes injected into some patients before MRI scans and all patients before MRA scans.

The disease is known as nephrogenic systemic fibrosis or nephrogenic fibrosing dermopathy (NSF/NFD), and appears to only occur in patients with kidney disease who undergo an MRI or MRA where a gadolinium-based dye is used.

August 21, 2009

Mercury Found in all Fish Caught in U.S.-Tested Streams

by Dr. Shezad Malik

A government test of fish pulled from nearly 300 streams in the USA found every one of them contaminated with some level of mercury.

The U.S. Geological Survey’s research marks its most comprehensive examination of mercury contamination in stream fish. The study found that 27% of the fish had mercury levels high enough to exceed what the Environmental Protection Agency considers safe for the average fish eater, those who eat fish twice a week.

But the findings in wild-caught fish underscore how widespread mercury contamination in the nation’s waterways has become. Previous research has found levels of concern in ocean and lake fish.