Illinois Medical Malpractice Blog

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.

A product recall has been issued for Total Body Formula and Total Body Mega Formula products. The products which are suppose to help with overall fitness have instead lead to serious personal injuries to the users of the recalled product. The nutrition supplement recall follows after the products were determined to contain toxic levels of some chemicals. Product liability lawsuits have already been filed by users of the recalled product who have suffered personal injuries from hair loss to pain in their legs. Product manufacturer lawsuits and lawsuits against the distributor of the recalled pharmaceutical and health product may be forthcoming. To read the full article click here.

A pharmaceutical lawsuit has been filed against Baxter after an individual received tainted heparin. The tainted product given to the 38 year old man lead him to suffer from serious personal injuries, pain and suffering and emotional trauma. There is likely a medical malpractice suit to be alleged against the dialysis clinic where the individual received the tainted medication from. To see the full story click here.

The case of Heparin contaminated with unknown toxins and imported from China continues to claim lives. To date, more than 81 deaths are linked to contaminated Heparin in the US and more may be discovered soon. The FDA says that the deaths from contaminated Heparin are a direct result of an allergic reaction to the toxin in some patients. The Chinese government denies that the contamination caused any deaths, though they do acknowledge that large batches of Heparin were contaminated. The Double lesson here is not just that drugs can be easily contaminated from foreign sources, but that two congressional hearings have highlighted just how under-funded and under-prepared the FDA is currently.

Read more on this story here.

A new study published in the journal Pediatrics shows that about 1 in 15 children are harmed each year by medication dosing errors at hospitals. The study revealed that children are harmed by dosing errors and incorrect medication substantially more often than previously thought. The study also revealed that some of these dosing errors and patient injuries could be prevented easily.

Medication dosing errors in children are the central issue in popular actor Dennis Quaid’s lawsuit in Chicago against Deerfield, Illinois-based Baxter Healthcare. Quaid is suing Baxter, a large pharmaceutical manufacturer, after Quaid’s baby twins received a Heparin overdose. The medical malpractice lawsuit is pending before Judge Quinn in the Circuit Court of Cook County.

The full text of the Pediatrics study is available here.

The FDA announced it will begin examining a potential link between a popular allergy drug and suicide. The review was prompted by three-to-four reports the FDA received about patients using the drug committing suicide. The drugs listed side effects already include tremors, anxiousness, depression and suicidal thinking and behavior. In response to the announcement, the company has stated it will list reports of suicide on the drug’s label. If a link is found by the FDA, consumers must once again wonder how truthful drug companies are in reporting clinical research relating to the side effects of mass-market drugs.

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Actor, Dennis Quaid recently suited Baxter Healthcare Corporation in a products liability lawsuit. The complaint alleges negligent packaging of different doses of a production in similar vials with blue backgrounds. The drug, a blood thinner called Heparin, was given to Mr. Quaid’s new born twins and they were inadvertently given massive doses at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center on November 18. The lawsuit was filed in the Illinois courts as Baxter Healthcare is based in Deerfield, IL.

In February of this year, Baxter had issued a letter to all health care workers cautioning them about the possible mix-up. According to Dennis and his wife, Kimberly, this was not enough.

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Foreign drug company Bayer AG, has pulled Trasylol from U.S. shelves. Trasylol has been used to reduce blood loss for patients undergoing by-pass surgery and avoid transfusions. The drug was pulled amid concerns that it may be linked to a higher risk of death than other drugs. So far, no major lawsuits have been filed.

The FDA announced it would review Trasylol last month after a clinical experiment was halted when the drug appeared to be linked to a higher risk of death. There was also a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine in January of last year which advised against continued use of the drug because of the risk of kidney failure, and increased risk of heart attacks, heart failure and strokes.

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A new study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association has confirmed and corroborated the results of an earlier study that first connected Avandia to an increased risk of heart attack. This new study used a different methodology than the earlier study published in the New England Journal of Medicine, and it reached the same conclusion – a patient’s risk of heart attack increases by over forty percent when taking the diabetes medication, Avandia. This statistic is further exacerbated by the fact that diabetes sufferers are already at a higher risk of heart attack. In fact, the leading cause of death for diabetes sufferers is heart attack. It is this heightened risk to heart attack that has the researchers behind the new study to state that the FDA should reconsider its latest decision to keep the drug on the market.

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Pharmaceuticals are continuing to put patients at risk. There have been instances of bad reaction to a common drug, Reglan, used to prevent post-operative nausea and vomiting. A woman has recently come forward alleging an instance of product liability, claiming that after she was injected with Reglan, she immediately began experiencing tremors. Her surgery was canceled, but the tremors have continued. Tardive Dyskinesia, a condition that causes involuntary movements, is one of the adverse effects of Reglan.

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The victims of product liability and wrongful death have begun to sue Davol Inc., the manufacturer of the hernia repair device called Composix Kugel Mesh Patch. Some of the patches have failed some time after hernia surgeries causing serious injuries and death. The use of the defective product has caused perforated bowels, has abnormally attached itself to other organs or passageways and has stuck to other internal organs. Deaths were beginning to occur at least 21 months before the first Kugel Mesh recall would take place.

Today, a federal scientist announced that diabetes drug Avandia should be pulled from the market. Avandia drug maker Glaxo Smith Kline of course disputes these recommendations.

The expert maintains that Avandia should be pulled from the market because of heart risks associated with consuming the drug and the drug’s lack of any unique short-term benefits in maintaining blood-sugar levels for diabetics.

The FDA is currently meeting to determine whether Avandia should be restricted or completely pulled from the market. The FDA was alerted to the dangers of Avandia by a New England Journal of Medicine study that showed a 43% higher risk of heart attack by those taking Avandia compared with patients taking alternative diabetes medication.

Patients who have endured heart attacks or heart problems and who have taken Avandia may be entitled to compensation for these injuries.

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The Federal Drug Administration (FDA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDCP) have issued an alert regarding Propofol, and anesthetic commonly known as Diprivan. Several clusters of patients have reported experiencing chills, fever and body aches after being administered the drug. If you or someone you know has received Propofol for sedation of general anesthesia and subsequently experienced fever, chills, and body aches or other symptoms please make a report to the MedWatch program. Those patients should also be evaluated for bacterial sepsis. At this point, no product liability lawsuits have been filed.

Click here to view the FDA alert

Pharmaceutical companies and device manufacturers have access to information regarding which medications doctors prescribe for the reason that they are able to buy the information from the American Medical Association (AMA), and from companies that match the AMA’s data with pharmacy records. The AMA is holding its annual meeting in Chicago, where this topic is sure to be raised as an important issue. Some groups are planning to protest during the meeting in front of the Hilton Chicago. The information is being used to increase the sales of newer, more expensive drugs whereas it could be used to improve quality, safety of care, and lower drug prices. Many states, including Illinois, are proposing bills after noticing the correlation between the release of such information and the rising health care costs consumers face. Doctors that are not members of the AMA, about two thirds, are unaware that this information is being released. The AMA is planning to publish ads in medical journals to spread the information to doctors unaware of the fact that they can opt out of this practice.

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Avandia, a medication used to fight type 2 diabetes, has been identified as a heart risk. The risks were reported in a study last week and confirmed by the government’s preliminary evaluation. The FDA would like to wait for the results of a study that will not conclude for two years, which could put millions more at risk. Critics of the FDA and Avandia complain that two years is too long to wait when lives are at risk. The initial study suggests that as many as 60,000 to 10,000 heart attacks might be linked to the use of Avandia from the time it appeared on the market eight years ago. Diabetics are especially susceptible to heart complication; two-thirds of diabetics die from heart problems. The FDA and diabetes experts are advising users of the drug to talk to their doctors before discontinuing the drug to prevent losing control of blood-sugar levels. Product liability law provides compensation for those who may have been affected by the use of this drug.

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The Senate passed a bill on Wednesday by a vote of 93 to 1that would give the FDA more power to police pharmaceutical manufacturers. The bill allows the FDA to police drug safety, order changes in drug labels, regulate advertising and restrict the use and distribution of medicines found to pose serious risks to consumers. The bill aimed to fundamentally change the philosophy and operations of the FDA as an agency, requiring it to focus on the entire life cycle of a drug, not just the years before its approval. If passed, the bill requires the government to establish a surveillance system to track the adverse effects of prescription drugs.

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The company that makes the painkiller OxyContin and three of its current and former executives pleaded guilty last week in federal court to criminal charges that it misled doctors and patients when it claimed the drug was less likely to be abused than traditional narcotics. The company agreed to pay $600 million in fines to resolve the criminal charge of “misbranding” the product. This settlement amount is one of the largest amounts ever paid by a drug company.

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Plaintiffs have recently filed more than 350 product liability lawsuits against AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals L.P., the maker of the anti-psychotic drug Seroquel. Plaintiffs say that there is nothing strategic behind the spike in filings, but a defense observer suggests that the plaintiffs may be trying to force the drug makers into an early settlement. The product liability lawsuits regard a label change ordered by the FDA, indicating that drug users are at a heightened risk of contracting diabetes.

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