Drug Recall Lawyer Blog

The Accident Injury Lawyer Blog has a post on the latest chapter in the alcohol swab recall debacle.

Alcohol swabs are probably the last thing you expected to cause a risk to your family. People using over the counter alcohol swabs are often dealing with something serious, like to clean off their vial of insulin to treat diabetes. There have been at least 7 deaths linked to this alcohol swab recall that never would have happened if the manufacturer was following just basic principles of safety. Just tragic.

After eight hours of deliberations, a Montana jury found that a Breg infusion shoulder pump was defective and caused injury to an orthopedic surgeon.

Plaintiff's verdict? Not so fast. The jury found the product was defective but that the infusion pump conformed to the state-of-the-art design at the time it was sold. This can be fatal to a failure to warn claim.

The state-of-the-art defense under Maryland law in strict liability, failure to warn cases was explained in the landmark claim of Owens-Illinois Inc. v. Zenobia (which is best known for requiring actual malice for punitive damages in Maryland). Zenobia found that the manufacturer of a product, which is defective only because of the lack of an adequate warning, is not liable when the failure to warn resulted from an absence of knowledge of how dangerous the product was. Still, required knowledge is "knew or should have known" - it can be established by evidence that the risk should have been known because it was known in the scientific or expert community. This knowledge is called the 'state of the art' evidence.

Continue reading " State of the Art Defense " »

The C.R. Bard Avaulta vaginal mesh lawsuits allege that mesh surgically implanted to treat pelvic organ prolapse may be defective. As a result, an unbelievable number of women are at risk for internal injuries and urinary problems.

The FDA recently expressed an even graver concern that the placement of surgical mesh through the vagina to repair pelvic organ prolapse may expose women to greater risks than other available options.

Bard Avaulta mesh lawsuits allege that the defective design of the mesh implant may increase the risk of infection, erosion and other painful complications. Plaintiffs' lawyers are bringing lawsuits against C. R. Bard, Inc., which makes and sells Avaulta Plus and Avaulta Solo synthetic surgical mesh tissue supports, and a host of other manufacturers (see bottom of this post).

These lawsuits are multiplying quickly. But there are a lot of women who are not going to bring a vaginal mesh lawsuit because they perceive a privacy invasion. This is understandable but it underscores a general misconception about what a claim will entail.

These are national mass tort cases. Frankly, mass torts are rather impersonal and are handled by national lawyers - attorneys you likely will ever meet. Many vaginal mesh lawsuits have already reached a settlement for pretty decent sums of money - life changing for many people. In many ways, it is about filling out some paperwork and waiting and you always have the option of just dropping your case if you don't like where it is going in terms of your privacy or your need to be involved in the case.

Ultimately, some women are going to read the preceding paragraph and say "I don't care, I'm not putting myself out there in any way." I can't really argue with this. I'm just trying to provide the full context to potential clients.

Continue reading " Avaulta Vaginal Mesh Lawsuits: What Bringing a Claim Really Entails " »

• Jury selection began this week in a Nevada lawsuit filed against three companies that make or distribute pharmaceuticals by patients who allege they became infected with Hepatitis C through contaminated propofol during colonoscopies.
• Some lots of Vasopressin Injection are being recalled because they may not be as potent as intended.
• Some General Electric anesthesia breathing circuits are recalled because they may not allow enough oxygen to reach the patient.
• There have been major supply problems with Fabrazyme, the only drug approved for a rare genetic disease.
• Consumers file a class action over a GNC weight-loss drug. (Scroll down.)
• Who's to blame for faulty drugs?
• Should Pfizer be allowed to sell Lipitor over the counter?
• Johnson & Johnson is reducing its recommended maximum dosage to cut the risk of liver damage.>/li>
• High doses of Diflucan can lead to birth defects, the FDA says.