Illinois Medical Malpractice Blog

Medical malpractice attorneys have filed a class action lawsuit against a hospital after it informed more than 350 patients that they may have received unnecessary heart stents. The hospital had recently sent letters to the patients informing them that they may have received stents even though their arteries were not in fact clogged enough that they would need such a stent. The class-action lawyers state that the stents were implemented because of their $10,000 procedure costs. The hospital did not comment on the medical malpractice lawsuit.. Surgeries should only be performed if they are in the interest of the patient. To read into the class-action lawsuit, please click the link.

Scores of radiation overdoses at a medical center have been traced to a single cause. That cause is a hospital mistake made when resetting a CT scanner. Hospital officials said that the medical error occurred in February 2008, when the hospital began using a new protocol for a specialized type of scan used to diagnose strokes. The doctors had believed it would provide them more useful data to analyze disruptions in the flow of blood to brain tissue. However this meant resetting the machine to override the pre-programmed instructions that came with the scanner when it was installed. There turned out to be a misunderstanding about an embedded default setting applied by the machine and as a result there were higher levels of radiation administered to patients. The dose of radiation was eight times what it should have been. Once the scanner was programmed each patient received the overdose. The hospital error went unnoticed for the next 18 months, when a stroke patient informed the hospital that he had begun using his hair after a scan. 206 people had received the overdoses and 40% of them had suffered patchy hair loss. Excess radiation would be difficult to detect from simply looking at the scan results. Radiation exposure increases the likelihood of cancer. To read more about the radiation overdoses, please click the link.

A southern Illinois woman died after being severely burned in a flash fire while undergoing surgery. This has become a rare but vexing medical error in operating rooms. The victim died six days after being burned on the operating table at the hospital. The victim’s attorney had requested medical records from the hospital and that he had few details about what happened. The state medical examiner’s office said the victim died from complications of thermal burns and classified her death as accidental. The hospital only stated that there was an accidental flash fire in one of the hospital’s operating rooms injuring a patient before being immediately extinguished. The hospital could not state how the fire started but that it responded with necessary and appropriate measures. Surgical flash fires oftentimes are sparked by electric surgical tools when oxygen builds up under surgical drapes. The fires actually occur an estimated 550 to 600 times a year but only kill about one or two people each year. However, worries have mounted in recent years with increased use of electrosurgical devices and the replacement of cloth hospital drapes with those made of more-flammable, disposable synthetic fabric. To read more about the surgical fire, please click the link.

A woman learned from her hospital that medical devices used during her surgery may have caused severe infection in her brain. The severe and fatal infection is known as Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease. This disease causes dementia, memory loss, deteriorating eyesight, impaired thinking or judgment, and motor function loss in patients. The woman is under traumatic stress and has hired a medical malpractice lawyer to represent her best interests in this hospital negligence case.

Read more about the medical device infection here.

Over 2,000 diabetes patients may be at risk for a blood-borne illness due to an improper medical procedure. The reusable insulin pen system was implemented to allow patients to use the same pen over multiple times to inject insulin, but instead the pens were used multiple times on different patients.

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American Association for Justice is hosting a seminar on medical malpractice lawsuits this weekend in Phoenix, Arizona. The seminar will provide an in-depth understanding of medical negligence issues and trial strategies.

For more information.

A medical malpractice lawsuit claims that doctors at a hospital left a five-inch catheter inside a man’s heart, causing an infection that complicated his fight against cancer, then tried to cover up the mistake. The man says that the hospital should have known that a catheter being used to treat his non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma had broken off from a port in his chest after he began treatment. The catheter became a “time bomb” when it lodged in his heart and caused an infection which permanently damaged the organ. The medical center arranged for an operation to extract the catheter through his next and groin. The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages for negligence, medical malpractice, fraud and battery. The medical malpractice suit accuses the doctor of knowing the about the broken catheter “substantially before” the date the doctors claim to have discovered the device. The medical malpractice lawsuit also states that the doctor promoted surgery at the same hospital “in an attempt to extract the incriminating evidence” To read the full story, click here.

If a person had the Kugel Mesh patch implanted during their hernia surgery, there is a chance that their cure is worse than the disease. Some patients have experienced problems with their Kugel Mesh hernia patch that have caused serious, life-threatening conditions. The patch has a problem with the memory recoil ring component. Some patients claim that the mesh in their patch adhered to their organs. It takes future surgeries and the loss of portions of a person’s digestive system to get rid of the mesh. One patient claimed that the mesh attached to part of his bowel and he underwent surgery to remove the “gooey” matter that formed as a result. He suffered a severe infection and his abdomen protrudes through the loose muscle in his stomach. There have also been reports of internal fistulae and bowel perforations. People who are considering the Kugel Mesh patch should speak with their doctors before they make their decision. To read the full story, click here.

Hospira, a global medication delivery company, is voluntarily recalling a plastic product used to administer injections. A small number of products may be incorrectly labeled. Adverse effects from error may result in electrolyte imbalance, cardiac dysfunction, gastrointestinal disturbances, paresthesia and mental confusion.

For the full story click here.

After a woman had a cancerous lump removed from her breast, her doctor referred her to a specialist who uses a newer form of treatment where radioactive “seeds” are inserted in the tumor site. This procedure could be completed in only five days instead of the six weeks typically required for conventional treatment. This newer treatment has been performed on about 45,000 breast cancer patients in the country since the FDA cleared it for use. However, the patient sought a second opinion about this treatment and learned that it is still considered highly experimental. The MammoSite system is among the thousands of devices the F.D.A. lets onto the market each year only cursory review and with no clear evidence that they help patients. Doctors are free to use those products as they see fit, yet they do not have to inform patients that the devices are not proved. The doctors are frequently paid more by Medicare as a way to compensate them for the extra time and expense of adopting new procedures. This allows the unproven products to become widely adopted. Thus, there is a growing debate among cancer specialists on whether there is enough evidence to recommend the new treatment to woman who are not part of a clinical study. To read the full story, click here.

A Chicago surgeon is being sued after implanting a device which he invented in a patient, allegedly without consent. The device, a Myxo ETlogix annuloplasty ring, was implanted in the patient in April 2006 by Dr. Patrick McCarthy at Northwestern Memorial Hospital to fix the patient’s leaky heart valve. Dr. McCarthy developed the heart device and receives royalties for its sale, which are donated to a charity. In July, a research paper by Dr. McCarthy was published in a medical journal. The article was based on a study that included the patient and focused on the initial experience with the device. Dr. McCarthy stated that the patient had consented to participate in the study. The patient said that she would not have consented to the use of an experimental device. The doctor denies that the device was experimental but failed to inform the patient that he had invented the ring before proceeding with the implantation. According to medical ethics experts, a patient should be informed if a surgeon will receive royalties on a device that he or she may use in surgery and a patient must agree to take part in medical research, by signing an informed consent form his or her to their involvement in the study.

The patient experienced inflammation following the implantation, was required to undergo a second surgery to remove the device, and is now confronted with the possibility of needing a heart transplant. She filed a lawsuit in Cook County this April against McCarthy, Northwestern Memorial Hospital and Edwards Lifesciences, the device’s manufacturer.

The FDA has received 10 reports on adverse events related to the Myxo ETlogix ring and an investigation is currently underway to determine whether the agency received proper notice about the device.

For the full story, click here.

Earlier this year, the US Supreme Court decided that there was a federal law barring suits against makers of government-approved medical devises such as pacemakers. Now, the Court will consider whether to extend the shield against lawsuits to the makers of prescription medicines and over-the-counter drugs. The current case before the court concerns a 62-year-old musician whose right arm was amputated after an anti-nausea drug was improperly injected into an artery and caused gangrene. She was successful in her medical malpractice suit and was awarded $6.7 million. The pharmaceutical company is appealing the medical malpractice suit saying that it should be thrown out. They claim that the FDA should decide whether a drug is safe or dangerous, not a jury. This would be changing the historical right to a civil jury trial as a protection for consumers. Consumer rights advocates state that companies should not have immunity from liability that ordinary citizens don’t have. To read the full story, click here.

An Illinois Medical malpractice lawsuit filed seven years ago has finally ended with a million dollar medical malpractice settlement. The large medical malpractice settlement did not come without sacrifice. Illinois medical malpractice plaintiff, Vanessa Jenkins, brought a lawsuit against an Illinois hospital after her son was delivered with a birth defect. Her son sustained brain injuries and other personal injuries as a result of the hospital’s negligent misconduct. The negligent doctor who used a vacuum extractor during delivery of the child caused the child to suffer from serious personal injuries including brain injuries, mental retardation and cerebral palsy. To reach more about this record setting medical malpractice settlement look at on Point Medical Litigation articles or click here to read an article.

Six people are dead and three injured after a medical helicopter crashed into another medical helicopter. The medical helicopter crashes came after the planes were transporting injured patients to the hospital. Medical errors are thought to be grounded in hospitals such as medical malpractice physician errors, pharmaceutical errors or medical device liability claims. This plane accident sheds light on a growing problem of medical helicopter crashes which raises questions about liability for the patient’s health and for the health of hospital and medical employees. To read about the most recent crash click here.

A new tort reform bill proposed in the House of Representatives may bring justice to those who face medical device defects and have pharmaceutical liability claims. The bill, titled the Medical Device Safety Act would allow those to bring product liability suits even on products approved by the FDA. This bill would allow those who suffered personal injuries from medical device defects and defective drugs to have a cause of action against the makers of such products. To read more about this tort reform that allows this nation to head in a positive direction click here.

Serious burn injuries and raw skin have occurred after use of the popular pain relieving product, Icy Hot pain patches. A medical product recall has occurred earlier this year where the manufacturer recalled medical products totaling nearly 2.3 million patches. Medical product complaints have been directed to the manufacturer, Chattem Inc, since the product’s distribution in December of 2006. Those suffering medical product personal injuries may think about filing a personal injury lawsuit or a product liability lawsuit. To see the full story on this heated debate click here.

Following a routine procedure to clear a blocked intestine, a German man later discovered operating room medics committed medical malpractice and left a 15 inch pair of medical clamps inside him. He is now pursuing a 100,000 Pound claim for damages in a medical malpractice lawsuit.

For the full article.

The Supreme Court will hear a case next term that could decide whether drug companies may escape liability for harm caused by their products and hide behind FDA approval. The issue in the case involves Johnson & Johnson’s prescription birth control patch, Ortho Evra, which delivered much more estrogen than the company originally disclosed. The Ortho Evra patch was a popular form of birth control as an alternative to the birth control pill. For women, medication dosing errors of estrogen may cause an increased risk of blood clots and strokes and has been linked to one death.

Read the full text of the original article here.

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A lawsuit has been filed against a county medical examiner, paramedics, and county Emergency Medical Services after a man who was declared dead at the scene of an automobile accident but was found to be alive hours later sustained permanent injuries. Paramedics responded to calls after the car accident but negligently failed to check the man's vital signs properly not noticing his faintly beating heart. The paramedics made a further medical mistake when they failed to use monitors to check the status of the victim and when they failed to make resuscitation efforts even though it is mandated by policy. The medical examiner is being accused of medical malpractice in that he disregarded signs that the man was still alive, such as eye twitching and chest movements, for hours after the accident. The medical examiner has claimed that it was not his job to determine whether the victim was alive or dead. The man suffered a severe head injury along with a broken leg and other injuries. Now five months after the accident, the victim is just learning how to speak again. He might never fully recover as he would have if treated properly. The man's mother witnessed the accident and suffered severe trauma and distress when she was told that her son was dead.

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Two months ago, Medtronic, the maker of electronic heart defibrillators, notified physicians and a quarter million patients that its products contained a potentially fatal defect. The Medtronic product is designed to regulate patients with irregular heart beats by delivering electric impulses to the heart. When the product becomes defective, it either fails to deliver these necessary impulses or worse; it could deliver painful and unnecessary electric shocks. Those with faulty Medtronic devices have had them replaced with an older, more stable version of the product. One group that is particularly at risk for the product failure is those patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. However, there are substantial risks for all patients having this replacement surgery.

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