Product Liability

June 25, 2009

Family of Tree Trimmer Killed by Wood Chipper Sues Manufacturer

It was just another work day for Rafael Jimenez, a veteran tree trimmer in his 24th year on the job.

But as he stuffed branches from a Chinese elm tree into a wood chipper, his right hand became entangled in the branches and Jimenez found himself being jerked toward the steel knives.

The machine, which devours a 20-inch branch in a second, consumed nearly his entire body.

His wife and four children filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles County Superior Court alleging that the manufacturer of the machine, Michigan-based Morbark, knew for years that its safety features were insufficient and had done nothing to prevent injuries and deaths like Jimenez’s.

June 24, 2009

Zicam Lawsuit Filed

by Dr. Shezad Malik

In what could be the opening salvo in a new wave of lawsuits against the Scottsdale-based maker of Zicam, lawyers filed a lawsuit on behalf of 117 people who claim they have suffered loss of smell after using the popular nasal spray.

Among those suing Scottsdale-based Matrixx Initiatives Inc. include one dozen Phoenix-area residents as well as the chef of an upscale Las Vegas-area restaurant who no longer can smell or taste food.

Matrixx officials said they had not seen the lawsuit filed in Maricopa County Superior Court, but a spokesman said the company believes that its nasal products are safe and do not cause loss of smell.

June 21, 2009

Hydroxycut Weight-loss Products Sued

by Dr. Shezad Malik

A class action lawsuit filed in Los Angeles accuses recalled Hydroxycut weight-loss products of causing deadly liver damage and other severe complications.

The suit, filed in U.S. District Court on behalf of anyone who consumed the now-banned supplements, claims the company failed to warn users of the risks of injury.

The Hydroxycut products were recalled May 1 after being linked to dozens of cases of liver damage, jaundice, and other related injuries. In one case, a 19-year-old Hydroxycut user died in 2007 after developing liver failure, but the death was not reported to the Food and Drug Administration until last March, according to the complaint.

June 15, 2009

Accutane Lawsuits and Litigation

by Dr. Shezad Malik

The acne remedy Accutane, a synthetic form of vitamin A used to treat serious forms of acne that can cause scarring, has been the subject of extensive litigation because of a long list of side effects including inflammatory bowel disease, suicide, and birth defects.

The U.S. manufacturer of Accutane, Hoffman La Roche, is part of the international conglomerate known as “The La Roche Group,” with affiliates in 150 countries. “The La Roche Group” is estimated to be the seventh largest pharmaceutical company in the world. Accutane is one of Hoffman La Roche’s top sellers with estimated annual sales of $1.2 billion. Accutane is also one of the 3 drugs on the market with the most reports of adverse side effects, and this has led to extensive litigation. Lawsuits have been brought against Hoffman La Roche for alleged adverse reactions caused by Accutane including gastrointestinal disorders, suicides, and birth defects.

June 13, 2009

F.D.A. Warns Against Use of Popular Cold Remedy

by Dr. Shezad Malik

Federal drug regulators warned consumers to stop using Zicam, a popular homeopathic cold remedy, because it could damage or destroy their sense of smell.

The Food and Drug Administration received 130 reports from consumers and doctors of people losing their sense of smell after using one of the Zicam nasal products, which include Zicam Cold Remedy and Zicam Cold Remedy Swabs. The reports date to 1999, when Matrixx Initiatives of Scottsdale, Ariz., first introduced the products.

In 2006, Matrixx paid $12 million to settle 340 lawsuits from Zicam users who claimed that the product destroyed their sense of smell, a condition known as anosmia. Hundreds more such suits have since been filed.

June 11, 2009

Wife of Congressman Loses Accutane Acne-Drug Suicide Case

by Dr. Shezad Malik

The Eleventh Circuit ruled on Wednesday on an interesting and provocative case. In an unpublished opinion, the Eleventh Circuit affirmed a trial court’s grant of summary judgment in a case in which the mother of a 17 year-old who committed suicide in 2000 sued Hoffman-La Roche, Inc. The plaintiff alleged that Accutane, an acne drug made by Hoffman-LaRoche caused the suicide. Click here for reports from BNET Pharma and the Drug and Device Blog, respectively.

June 8, 2009

Victoza for Diabetes: Better Than Byetta?

by Dr. Shezad Malik

A new diabetes drug — to be called Victoza if approved — works better than Byetta, a head-to-head clinical trial shows.

Byetta is the first of the class of type 2 diabetes drugs called GLP-1 analogs. The drug takes advantage of the body’s own signaling system to increase insulin output in response to meals.

Byetta is a popular drug, and it’s helped many patients. But liraglutide — soon to be called Victoza if approved by the FDA — works better, says Lawrence Blonde, MD, director of the diabetes clinical research unit at Ochsner Clinic Foundation, New Orleans.

“Our direct comparison study shows patients who took liraglutide once a day had a greater reduction in [average blood sugar levels] at the end of the 26-week study than did [Byetta] twice a day,” according to Blonde . “Obviously, once-a-day injections would be preferred by many patients because of the convenience — and it is not tied to meals. Liraglutide can be taken any time as long as you take it the same time each day.”

June 3, 2009

Defective Product: Kugel® Mesh Hernia Patch Recall

by Dr. Shezad Malik

The Bard® Composix® Kugel® Mesh Hernia Patch has been linked to serious, life-threatening side effects and has been voluntarily recalled by its manufacturer and in association with the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA).

On January 8, 2008, a Federal Court judge expanded the scope of current hernia patch lawsuits to include all Davol/Bard Marlex/Teflon patches, with or without “memory recoil rings.”
In August 2001, Davol began receiving reports of complications and failures of its hernia mesh patch. These reports advise of bowel obstructions, adhesions, constipation, and fistula resulting from implantation of Composix® Kugel® Mesh Patches. The reports also contain descriptions of problems other then memory recoil ring breakage including, “buckled mesh,” “patch shriveling” and “edges curled up,” as well as descriptions of the mesh as being “crumpled,” “wrinkled,” “rolled up,” “delaminated” and “folded.”

June 2, 2009

Texas Mesothelioma Lawyers, How to File an Asbestos Lawsuit in Texas

by Dr. Shezad Malik

Asbestos is a naturally occurring fiber that, when released into the air, can be inhaled or swallowed. Asbestos fibers are so small that they are not visible to the naked eye. Once they are inhaled, asbestos fibers stay in the body and, over the course of decades, lead to the development of asbestos-related diseases like mesothelioma.

Mesothelioma is rare form of cancer caused by asbestos exposure. An estimated 3,000 Americans are diagnosed with mesothelioma each year, and because the disease takes decades to develop, the rate of new diagnoses is still climbing. The peak incidence of mesothelioma is predicted to occur around 2020.

May 29, 2009

Bausch & Lomb Settles 600 Fungus Law Suits

by Dr. Shezad Malik

Some eye doctors are still hoping that some of the lawsuits over a lens cleaner made by Bausch & Lomb will end up in court, so that the events that led to hundreds of fungal infection lawsuits will be aired publicly.

That has not happened. Over the past year, the company has quietly settled nearly 600 lawsuits, with dozens of individual claims still to be resolved. The cost so far is about $250 million.