Dallas Fort Worth Injury Lawyer Blog

July 29, 2009

Baxter Contaminated Heparin Class Action Lawsuit Still Open

Patients who were harmed because of heparin contamination still have time to bring claims against the makers of the heparin products. Patients may have been exposed to contaminated heparin through injections, pre-filled syringes or IV bags. It is important for people affected by contaminated heparin to hold those responsible accountable for what happened.

Heparin is a blood thinner, used in a variety of procedures, including dialysis and cardiac procedures. In early 2008, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced a recall of certain Baxter heparin products after the agency received reports of adverse reactions linked to the products. Within a month, hundreds of reports detailing severe reactions to heparin surfaced worldwide. The recall was later expanded to include more products and other companies.

The FDA discovered that the contaminant was oversulfated chondroitin sulphate (OSCS), the reactions to OSCS can be extreme; with large doses of heparin, it can result in death.

Injuries linked to contaminated heparin include nausea, vomiting and flu-like symptoms to anaphylactic shock, coma and even death.

July 29, 2009

Veteran Blinded During Routine Operation

by Dr. Shezad Malik

A federal judge has awarded $749,000 to the estate of a World War II veteran who lost much of his vision during surgery at the Veterans Administration medical facility in Jackson, MS.

U.S. District Judge Tom Lee said in a footnote to Monday’s 18-page ruling that he was inclined to award more money for Charles West’s suffering, “which clearly has been extreme,” but was limited by Mississippi’s pain-and-suffering cap in such lawsuits.

West, claimed in his suit that he suffered damage to the corneas of both eyes during a blepharoplasty, a procedure to remove sagging skin between the eyebrow and the eye lid.

July 29, 2009

FDA Warns Against Bodybuilding Products Containing Steroids

by Dr. Shezad Malik

Federal regulators warned consumers on Tuesday not to use body-building products that are sold as nutritional supplements but may contain steroids or steroidlike substances, citing reports of acute liver injury and kidney failure.

The Food and Drug Administration said it issued the warning because of increased reports of medical problems in men who had used such products.

But except for naming eight specific supplements sold by a single company, the Food and Drug Administration did not provide much clear guidance to consumers on what other products to avoid. The F.D.A. acknowledged that it did not know how many products its warning affect

July 28, 2009

Defective Drug: Accutane Lawsuits and Inflammatory Bowel Disease

by Dr. Shezad Malik

Accutane has been a controversial acne medication because of the serious risk of side effects and suicides attributed to it. The FDA warned physicians prescribing the acne medication to be aware of any signs of depression their patients might display. Accutane manufacturer Hoffman-LaRoche did not warn patients and healthcare professionals of the potential risks involved with Accutane until after the FDA made this advisement.

In October 2001, Congressman Bart Stupak expressed his concerns about Accutane following the suicide of his son who was taking Accutane. Accutane manufacturer has warned physicians that the acne drug can possibly cause “depression, psychotic symptoms, and rarely suicide attempts,” but still the company maintains they believe the drug is safe. In addition, Accutane carries high risk of serious birth defects, including deformed babies, miscarriage, premature birth, or death of the baby.

July 28, 2009

Suit Filed in Death of Tot Left in Car

by Dr. Shezad Malik

The parents of a toddler who died July 1 in a locked minivan outside a Bucks County daycare center – forgotten there for more than six hours – have filed a negligence lawsuit against the center and its owners.

Daniel Slutsky, 2, died of hyperthermia in the back seat of a van belonging to his neighbor, Rimma Shvartsman, a co-owner of Fairy Tales Daycare Center in Penndel.

In the suit, filed in Philadelphia, Gil and Lyudmila Slutsky seek an unspecified amount of damages, saying Fairy Tales and its owners “were under a legal and moral duty to provide competent and safe care” for their son.

Law enforcement authorities are still investigating the death, and Bucks Count District Attorney Michelle Henry has not ruled out possible criminal charges.

July 27, 2009

Medical Malpractice Trial Over Addicted Doctor Begins

by Dr. Shezad Malik

A former doctor who admitted he was abusing prescription drugs agreed to settle the medical malpractice lawsuit against him in St. Louis County court this week.

The patient, John W. Campbell, accused Michael Impey of putting a hole in his colon during a medical procedure in 2006. About a foot of Campbell’s colon was removed as a result of the injury.

Impey, who lost his medical license soon after the incident because he was abusing pain pills, agreed to settle Tuesday for an undisclosed amount.

July 26, 2009

Airman Loses Legs After Gallbladder Operation

by Dr. Shezad Malik

A 20-year-old airman was in critical condition at University of California Davis Medical Center on Monday, after losing both legs in what his family described as complications of routine gallbladder surgery.

Neither the medical center nor Travis Air Force Base, where Airman 1st Class Colton Read underwent surgery this month, would comment on specifics of his case.

Travis said only that a “serious medical incident” occurred at its David Grant Medical Center on July 9 and is being investigated by the base, a national hospital accrediting commission and the U.S. Surgeon General.

Read, who was stationed at Beale Air Force Base east of Marysville, Calif., was supposed to get his gallbladder removed laparoscopically at the Travis hospital, said his wife, Jessica Read.

July 25, 2009

Wrongful Death by Dentist After Tools Lost

by Dr. Shezad Malik

A Winter Park Florida dentist who twice dropped tools down the throat of an elderly patient — a 90-year-old man who died after the second incident — is being sued for negligence.

Relatives of Charles K. Gaal Jr. recently filed the suit in Orange County Circuit Court against Dr. Wesley Meyers of Aloma Park Dental.

They accuse Meyers of failing to take precautions to guard against dropping and losing his dental tools down Gaal’s throat and failing to handle his tools properly during the second incident, which occurred May 1, 2007.

On Oct. 4, 2006, while he was performing work on Gaal, Meyers dropped an “implant screwdriver tool” down the patient’s throat.

Gaal swallowed the tool and two days later, he underwent a colonoscopy. The tool was removed from his intestines, the suit said.

July 25, 2009

Fleet Phospate Class Action Lawsuits For Kidney Damage

by Dr. Shezad Malik

If you took an oral sodium phosphate (OSP) to clean your bowels prior to a colonoscopy and have developed kidney damage, there is a chance your health problems are linked to the use of the OSP. In 2008, certain oral sodium phosphates, including OsmoPrep and Visicol were given a black box warning, the highest warning required by the FDA, alerting patients to the risk of kidney damage.

The OsmoPrep and the Visicol are prescription drugs, and there is also an over-the-counter preparation called a Fleet enema. These also have been linked with acute kidney damage when used as bowel preparation for a colonoscopy but not when used as a laxative. In 2008, they were also given a black box warning that warns of the potential risks of renal failure.”

There are some people who are more susceptible to renal failure than others. Some factors that can affect a patient’s susceptibility include having pre-existing kidney damage, being dehydrated while taking the OSP, being on an angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor while taking the OSP, being on an angiotensin receptor blocker (ARB) while taking the OSP, having increased bowel transit times (such as a bowel obstruction or colitis), or being on a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) while taking the OSP. A final risk factor is being 55 years of age or older at the time the OSP is taken.

July 24, 2009

Legal Immunity set for Swine Flu Vaccine Makers

by Dr. Shezad Malik

The last time the government embarked on a major vaccine campaign against a new swine flu, thousands filed claims contending they suffered side effects from the shots. This time, the government has already taken steps to head that off.

Vaccine makers and federal officials will be immune from lawsuits that result from any new swine flu vaccine, under a document signed by Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius.

Since the 1980s, the government has protected vaccine makers against lawsuits over the use of childhood vaccines. Instead, a federal court handles claims and decides who will be paid from a special fund.

The document signed by Sebelius last month grants immunity to those making a swine flu vaccine, under the provisions of a 2006 law for public health emergencies. It allows for a compensation fund, if needed.