Ohio Personal Injury Blog - Defective & Dangerous Products

Ohio Woman Files GranuFlo Lawsuit

Miranda S. Miller — Wed, 28 Nov 2012 16:09:41 GMT

An Ohio woman has filed a GranuFlo lawsuit against Fresenius Medical Care entities, including its marketing division.

On November 11, 2010, Deborah Swigert’s 56-year-old husband suffered cardiac arrest during kidney dialysis treatment using GranuFlo or NaturaLyte, according to the product liability and wrongful death complaint. He was then rushed from the Fresenius clinic to a hospital, where he died.

“His death was an avoidable tragedy,” the lawsuit said. “…The Defendants intentionally proceeded with the manufacturing, marketing, advertising, sale and distribution of GranuFlo and NaturaLyte knowing that patients and consumers would be exposed to serious injury and death.”

The lawsuit went on to claim that Fresenius “aggressively marketed” GranuFlo and NaturaLyte by packaging them with other products and offering discounts. It also alleged that if Fresenius had disclosed cardiopulmonary risks, healthcare providers would not have used the dialysis solutions.

Instead, Fresenius went on to become the “largest provider of dialysis products and services” in the United States, per its website.

Originally posted at The Legal Examiner by Miranda S. Miller

Strangulation risk leads to stroller recall

Joseph Mansour — Wed, 25 Jul 2012 16:34:52 GMT

The Consumer Product and Safety Commission (CPSC) announced a voluntary recall on Tuesday of nearly 223,000 strollers due to the dangers they pose for young infants.

“This recall is part of a larger effort by CPSC to address fatalities that occurred prior to new and better stroller standards being in place," says CPSC spokesperson Patty Davis. Specifically, CNN reported, the death of a 6-month-old boy in 2004 and the near-strangulation of a 7-month-old girl in 2006. Both children wedged their head between the tray and seat.

In 2008, stroller manufacturers modified the amount of room between the stroller's tray and the seat bottom to prevent things like this from happening.

For that reason, CPSC officials want to warn parents with newborn children about the dangers of strollers that were made before that year.

Likewise, the CPSC advises mothers to be wary of buying strollers on auction sites, such as eBay, because they may inadvertently wind up with a dangerous product that should have been repaired or returned to the manufacturer.

Officials reportedly did not connect the abovementioned cases to company Peg Perego USA until recently. The Pliko-P3 and Venezia model stroller were first manufactured in January 2004 and sold at stores like Babies R Us and Buy Buy Baby throughout the country until September of 2007.

For a list of model numbers and the number to call for a repair kit, please visit the CPSC’s website.

Originally posted at The Legal Examiner by Joseph Mansour

FDA bans BPA in baby bottles and cups

Amber Scott — Wed, 18 Jul 2012 15:47:57 GMT

In response to an American Chemical Council request, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced yesterday that companies will no longer be allowed to use bisphenol A (BPA) in baby bottles and cups.

BPA is an estrogen-mimicking chemical used to make plastic shatterproof. Found in the lining of some food packaging, canned products and baby formula containers, it also keeps food fresh. But several manufacturers have stopped adding BPA to beverage bottles due to concerns associated with its use.

The FDA declared BPA safe in 2008, but since then, studies have linked the chemical to hazardous effects on the brain, behavior and prostate glands. BPA has also been said to cause cancer, sexual dysfunction and behavioral problems in children.

Baby bottles and cups are the only products affected by the ban. According to the Washington Post, the FDA does not see a safety concern with BPA and stands behind its use. The fact that the FDA advocates BPA use has caused some to criticize the agency.

“This is only a baby step in the fight to eradicate BPA," Dr. Sarah Janssen, a senior scientist at the environmental advocacy group Natural Resources Defense Council, reportedly stated. "To truly protect the public, [the] FDA needs to ban BPA from all food packaging. This half-hearted action-taken only after consumers shifted away from BPA in children’s products – is inadequate. FDA continues to dodge the bigger questions of BPA’s safety.”

Nearly a dozen U.S. states took the initiative to ban BPA use prior to the FDA’s ban. Several countries, including Canada and China, have also banned the dangerous chemical.

A study of more than 2,000 people shed an unsettling light on the presence of BPA. The study found the chemical present in 90 percent of the participants’ urine as well as in breast milk, the blood of pregnant women and umbilical cord blood.

Originally posted at The Legal Examiner by Amber Scott

Would you like ketchup or brush bristles on that burger?

Amber Scott — Fri, 13 Jul 2012 12:14:16 GMT

Back in April, we mentioned that Rhode Island residents have a propensity for perforating internal organs by swallowing charcoal grill brush bristles. This week, another set of cases was reported.

Rhode Island doctors reported that from 2011 to 2012, six people visited the emergency room after swallowing wire bristles found in meat cooked on the grill. The bristles were found in the patients’ throats, stomachs, intestines, and other internal organs.

Between 2009 and 2010, another six individuals were admitted to the emergency after swallowing bristles.

Health officials have begun to question whether a pattern can be identified. Earlier this year, Senator Charles Schumer asked the Consumer Product Safety Commission and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to review the grill brushes’ safety.

An investigation of hospital emergency departments throughout the U.S. found the problem is not exclusive to Rhode Island. Since 2007, nine Americans reportedly swallowed the bristles while eating meat cooked on a charcoal grill. Another 28 injuries were associated with the brushes and eight people say they have found bristles in their food or stuck to the grill.

Health officials are unsure about the particular brand, if any, causing the havoc. To minimize your chances of perforating your bowel and other internal organs, we recommend you follow these following tips and suggestions:

clean your grill with a wet cloth rather than a brush
clean the grill while it’s cold in order to minimize the chances of bristles sticking
throw away worn brushes and invest in a new one
wipe the grill after cleaning it with the brush to remove any loose bristles
inspect your grill prior to cooking with it.

If you have any other helpful tips, we’d love to hear from you.

Originally posted at The Legal Examiner by Amber Scott

Defective stroller more dangerous than the vacuum in Mr. Mom

Amber Scott — Tue, 19 Jun 2012 13:59:05 GMT

Think twice before strapping your precious bundle of joy in his or her Kolcraft Contours Options stroller. Kolcraft Enterprises recently recalled 36,000 strollers because both children and adults have gotten their fingers caught in a hinge mechanism. Three children suffered fingertip amputations and two adults smashed their fingers in the defective product.

If you have one of the following strollers, stop using it immediately and contact the manufacturer at 800-453-7673 between 8 a.m. and 6:45 p.m. Monday through Thursday and until 3:30 on Friday. Kolcraft will send you a free repair kit.

The recall affects Contours Options three- and four-wheeled strollers sold at Amazon.com, Target, and ToysRUs, among others, between the years 2006 and 2012. Model numbers begin with:

ZL002*
ZL005**
ZL008**
ZL015**
ZL018**

* For the ZL002 model, you’ll find the number and date of manufacture printed on a sticker above the left wheel.

** On the others, the model number and date of manufacture are printed on a label sewn into the edge of back of the stroller seat pad.

Stroller shopping can be a hassle, since there are so many options. If you’re a first-time mom, recalls like this can leave you even more frustrated. Here are, we hope, some helpful tips to follow while stroller shopping:

Focus on safety
Test strollers prior to purchasing, some stores keep models out to test drive
Pay attention to detail, including handle adjustments, accessories, and lock features
Consider your child’s age. Newborns require more support than older children
Look at multiple strollers to suit you and your child’s needs
Check the stroller manufacturer’s certification
Do research by checking ratings and product reviews
Review the warranty policy

Originally posted at The Legal Examiner by Amber Scott

Before yelling Banzai, you’d better read this

Amber Scott — Mon, 21 May 2012 13:16:56 GMT

Beware the Banzai Falls blue-and-yellow in-ground pool water slide this Memorial Day weekend. Chinese company Manley Toys, Ltd. recently recalled 21,000 slides sold at Wal-Mart and Toys R Us because they can deflate unexpectedly.

A jury recently awarded $20.6 million to the family of a 29-year-old mother who died after breaking her neck while sliding headfirst down a partially deflated slide at a pool party. A woman elsewhere likewise fractured her neck, and a 24-year-old man suffered a spinal cord injury that caused him to become quadriplegic.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission urged the public to return the 6-foot-tall vinyl slide as soon as possible. Spokesman Alex Filip told the media that people shouldn’t be “lulled into a false sense of security” because their slide hasn’t deflated yet.

“You could play on it all day Saturday and then the kids go out on Sunday and get hurt,” he said. “People sometimes attribute failures to poor maintenance or something they did wrong and if they’re not hurt, they may not report it. … You need to do what’s best for your family. Just bring it back and you’ll get your money back.”

Both Wal-Mart and Toys-R-Us sold the slide for around $250 and have agreed to issue full refunds with a cut-out of the two safety warnings on the slide.

Additionally, the CPSC would like consumers to contact them via SaferProducts.gov or 800-638-2772 if they were injured. And it’s always a good idea to consult a personal injury litigation firm to discuss your case with an experienced trial attorney. Many, like Spangenberg Shibley & Liber, offer a free consultation.

Originally posted at The Legal Examiner by Amber Scott

Is Pradaxa® better or worse than warfarin?

Amber Scott — Fri, 30 Mar 2012 09:05:00 GMT

Pradaxa was introduced to the U.S. in October 2010 to prevent blood clots in people with atrial fibrillation, or irregular heartbeat. It was thought to perform better than anticoagulant warfarin, which has been used since 1954 but requires frequent blood tests and takes a toll on the liver. However, Pradaxa’s drawbacks were revealed within weeks after its release when a number of reports linked the drug to side effects including heart attack, brain hemorrhaging, internal bleeding, gastrointestinal bleeding, and death.

This January, a group of Cleveland Clinic researchers found a 33 percent increased risk for heart attack across seven trials including more than 30,000 patients. But Pradaxa’s maker, Boehringer Ingelheim, is skeptical."We don't agree with the conclusion and the method used for this meta-analysis,” says Dr. John Smith, senior vice president for clinical development and medical affairs at Boehringer Ingelheim. “Based on all the data, we conclude that heart attack is not an adverse consequence of Pradaxa treatment."

Cleveland Clinic’s research team isn’t yet certain. “It's possible Pradaxa doesn't increase heart attack risk directly, but it may not be as effective as warfarin and aspirin in preventing heart attacks,” says Dr. Ken Uchino, director of the Vascular Neurology Fellowship Training Program at the Cleveland Clinic.

A 2009 study showed that Pradaxa is 34 percent better at lowering stroke risk than Warfarin. But Pradaxa’s risk for uncontrolled bleeding is higher. Earlier this month, an 83-year-old man died of severe brain bleeding after a simple fall that can be common among the elderly.

Roughly 2 million people take blood thinning medications every day to prevent dangerous blood clots from forming and causing a heart attack or stroke. Warfarin is the most commonly prescribed anticoagulant, and 31 million prescriptions were written for the drug in 2004.

Dr. Uchino suggests weighing Pradaxa and warfarin’s pros and cons with your doctor. “The risk appears to be there,” Uchino says of Pradaxa, “but the benefit is there, too. I don’t think it’s that straightforward. A lot of things in medicine aren’t straightforward.”

Originally posted at The Legal Examiner by Amber Scott

SSRI medications increase risk of high blood pressure

Amber Scott — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 16:07:10 GMT

Pregnant women who take selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) during or after pregnancy face an increased risk for developing high blood pressure according to a Canadian study.

The study published this week in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology examined more than 1,200 women listed in the Quebec Pregnancy Registry who were diagnosed with pregnancy-induced hypertension and showed no symptoms of high blood pressure prior to becoming pregnant.

Women taking antidepressants were compared to women not taking antidepressants, and researchers tried to adjust for factors like anxiety and depression that could raise blood pressure.

Women who used any form of antidepressant during pregnancy were found to be 50% more likely to suffer high blood pressure. Those taking SSRIs were 60% more likely. Paxil® users faced more than an 80% risk for developing hypertension.

Paxil is one of the most commonly prescribed drugs in the U.S. According to WebMD, SSRIs are usually the first choice in treating postpartum depression. Previous studies have focused on birth defects caused by mothers taking SSRIs during pregnancy. More than 800 lawsuits have been filed against drug makers, including Paxil maker GlaxoSmithKline, for failing to disclose the risk of newborns developing persistent pulmonary hypertension and congenital heart defects. The company is also accused of concealing test results and misleading doctors about risks associated with Paxil use.

Originally posted at The Legal Examiner by Amber Scott

Cleveland Clinic Researchers: Pradaxa Increases Heart Attack/Symptoms 33%

William Eadie — Thu, 16 Feb 2012 17:31:51 GMT

Pradaxa, an oral medication used to help prevent blood clots, has recently been linked by Cleveland Clinic researchers with a 33% increase in the risk of heart attacks or heart-disease symptoms. The researchers, Ken Uchino, MD, and Adrian V. Hernandez, MD, PhD, reviewed the results of trials involving 30,514 patients and 7 separate studies, according to CBS News.

Read the Pradaxa Report abstract (paid subscription required for full article access).

Pradaxa had been initially linked to “bleeding events,” which involve brain hemorrhaging, kidney bleeding, heart attack, and sometimes death. Internal bleeding may be the most serious of these symptoms (see the symptoms of internal bleeding on a Pradaxa internal bleeding website).

Increased concerns associated with Pradaxa use caused the FDA to issue a safety communication in December 2011, warning the public and medical community about the risk of injury and other complications associated with Pradaxa, according to Consumer Drug Report.

The Food and Drug Administration approved Pradaxa in October 2010 after which the FDA got reports that Pradaxa may be causing serious adverse side effects.

Pradaxa (dabigatran) is a medication designed to treat patients diagnosed with non-valvular atrial fibrillation. It is included in a class of drugs referred to as direct thrombin inhibitors. When untreated, blood clots can travel to the brain and cause stroke which can in most cases lead to death, or to the lungs (a pulmonary embolism). The FDA is also in the process of reviewing a number of claims that Pradaxa may cause internal bleeding.

Get the latest news on Pradaxa and news on dangerous drugs.

Originally posted at The Legal Examiner by William Eadie

DePuy Pinnacle Litigation Update

Alison De Villiers — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 13:52:09 GMT

Similar to the DePuy ASR hip implants, patients who received DePuy Pinnacle hip implants with metal components are experiencing pain, loosening, and popping, among other negative side effects. Although the DePuy Pinnacle was not recalled in August of 2010, like the DePuy ASR, the design is similar.

The pending DePuy Pinnacle cases that were filed in federal court have been consolidated into Multidistrict Litigation (MDL) in the Northern District of Texas. Judge Kinkeade will preside over the litigation and is in the process of selecting the Plaintiffs' Steering Committee.

In the meantime, Goodson & Company is investigating and pursuing DePuy Pinnacle hip implant cases. If you are experiencing problems with a hip replacement, feel free to contact our firm with questions.

Originally posted at The Legal Examiner by Alison De Villiers