New York Injury Lawyer Blog

The New York Times reports that DePuy Orthopaedics Inc is recalling two hip replacement products -- the ASR Hip Resurfacing System and the ASR XL Aceabular System. Acebabular refers to the bowl-shaped socket on the hip.

The company is a division of Johnson & Johnson. The Wall Street Journal said the company decided to issue the voluntary recall due to an increased risk of follow-up surgeries being required in conjunction with the use of the devices.

New York City medical malpractice claims can result from defective medical devices. Most hip replacement surgeries involve older adults who are at increased risk for complications and who may require significantly longer to heal after a surgical procedure. A second surgery can seriously impact recovery rates and may even result in a reduced quality of life or a premature death.

About 120,000 patients undergo hip replacement surgery each year, according to the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases. About one-third of adults will have a joint replaced in their lifetime.

The company said this week that a new study showed one 1 of every 8 patients needed a second surgery.

DePuy Orthopaedics said the company is "committed to paying for the cost of doctor visits, tests and procedures associated with the recall." Patients are being told to visit their surgeons to evaluate the performance of the implants.

Symptoms of problem implants include a loosening of the implant from the bone; bone fractures around the implant; and dislocation where the two parts of the implant are not longer aligned.

For more information on the hip replacement recall, you can visit the company website.

The company also warned the Food and Drug Administration this week that it is illegally marketing two other joint replacement products.

Continue reading "New York City patients with defective hip replacements should consult medical malpractice law firm" »

The Food and Drug Administration has issued a warning about Inferior Vena Cava Filters, citing risks associated with their long-term use.

Our New York City medical malpractice attorneys have reported problems associated with pharmaceuticals or medical devices, including Avandia and infusion pumps. Defective medical devices, dangerous pharmaceuticals or the inadequate care of a physician can require the assistance of an experienced attorney to protect a patient's rights.

In this case, the government is concerned that medical filters used to stop clots from reaching the lungs or heart could be causing their own problems.

In the last 5 years, the federal government has received 921 reports of problems with the filters, including device movement or migration (328), detachment of components (146) and filter fractures (56). The government reports some of the risk may be from leaving the filters in place for a long period of time, beyond the point when the risk of pulmonary embolism has subsided.

The FDA is concerned about the devices not being removed in a timely manner and is urging doctors and clinicians to remove the filters as soon as protection from pulmonary embolism is no longer needed.

ABC-4 in Utah reports that filters can become attached to the vein, making them difficult or impossible to remove. At least one Utah patient has filed a medical malpractice lawsuit over the issue.

The FDA's report could trigger a larger product recall and could result in other medical malpractice or product liability claims.

Continue reading "Safety of Inferior Vena Cava Filters called into question; New York medical malpractice claim may result from long-term use" »

New regulations adopted by the Department of Health and Human Services will permit patients to see how many hospital-acquired infections have been reported at their particular medical institution, CNN reported.

Our New York City medical malpractice lawyers believe informing patients of the dangers is one of the best ways to combat the issue of serious and fatal injuries resulting from hospital-acquired infections. As we reported earlier this year on our New York Injury Lawyer Blog, the government has cited hospital infections as a critical health and safety issue that is responsible for an estimated 100,000 deaths a year.

Advocates believe that public reporting of infection rates will help save lives and money by pressuring hospitals to improve safety measures aimed at preventing hospital-acquired infections.

"Patients shouldn't have to worry about getting sicker with an infection they catch in the hospital but every year nearly two million Americans do," says Lisa McGiffert, Director of the Consumer Union Safe Patient project. "Making infection rates public is a powerful motivator for hospitals to improve care and keep patients safe. This is an enormous victory for patient safety advocates who have worked tirelessly to hold hospitals accountable for failing to eliminate infections."

The new reporting requirements will apply to virtually all hospitals in the country. Starting next year, hospitals will be required to report to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention the number of patients who develop bloodstream infections in their intensive care and neonatal intensive care units. The CDC estimates that patients develop more than 250,000 central-line bloodstream infections each year while in the hospital.

During the first year, Medicare payments will be based on how well hospitals are reporting infection rates. Beginning in October 2012, payments will be tied to how well they protect patients from infection.

The government estimates that the direct costs associated with hospital infections are as high as $45 billion per year.

Continue reading "Mandatory reporting could result in fewer New York City medical malpractice cases caused by hospital infections" »

A federal review panel has recommended that Avandia, the controversial diabetes medication linked to heart attack risk, either be removed from the market or allowed to remain on the market with severe restrictions, the New York Times reported.

As our New York City medical malpractice attorneys have reported, this drug has had a long and sorted history. Most recently, we reported that the majority of studies that favored the drug had been written by doctors and other experts who were paid by the company. Consumers continue to be at risk from dangerous pharmaceuticals and medical products. Companies spend billions in marketing and developing drugs and devices and the government seems to be paying little attention to the potential dangers until well after the fact.

Nearly a decade after Avandia went on the market -- and three years after a Cleveland Clinic physician raised the alarm -- some government officials concluded Avandia was likely causing about 300 deaths a month and should be pulled from the market. Yet even that recommendation was only made public after the Times obtained the government report.

This week, a federal advisory panel split on what recommendation should be made to the Food and Drug Administration. Twelve members voted to withdraw it from the market; 10 favored increased warning labels and restrictions; 7 voted for increased warning labels only; and 3 said it should continue to be marketed as is.

Meanwhile, information was revealed during the hearings that the company knew of the drug's reported dangers for years and did not reveal the information to regulators or the public.

In the fall of 1999, makers of Avandia secretly studied whether it was safer than a competing pill. Not only did it prove no better, it actually proved that Avandia was riskier to the heart. Instead of publishing the results, it spent the next decade trying to cover them up, according to the New York Times. In most cases, failure to release the results would be a violation of law, the Times reported.

The heart risks of Avandia did not become known until 2007. In ensuing months, executives at the drug's maker, GlaxoSmithKline, were forced to admit they knew of the drug's potential risks since at least 2005.

The documents obtained by the Times suggest that the company knew of the risks since at least 1999 and hid them because of the potential loss of $300 million a year in revenue.

Make no mistake about it: Pharmaceutical sales is big business, perhaps the biggest business. Billions are spent marketing and developing drugs. Millions more are spent compensating well-paid sales people to push the drugs at doctors offices and hospitals. When patient care is lost in the mix, serious injury or death may result. Those harmed should seek experienced, aggressive and knowledgeable legal representation to fight for their rights.

Continue reading "Avandia saga continues to reveal high risk of medical malpractice, complications for New York patients taking prescription medication" »

North General Hospital in Harlem plans to file for bankruptcy protection, further stretching the city's hospital system, which has been battered by budget cuts and staffing reductions, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Our New York City medical malpractice attorneys continue to report hospital closings and staffing cuts in the city, which is impacting the availability of care for many residents and can increase the risk of medical error or hospital negligence in facilities that are overworked and understaffed.

In June, we reported that Harlem Hospital Center was under fire for hundreds of echocardiograms that were never read by a physician -- some familiar with the investigation told the Times that more than 200 of the patients have since died. Doctor's at the hospital cited short staffing as a primary reason why technicians were reading test results meant to be reviewed by trained physicians. And in May we reported another 500 planned layoffs at city hospitals, bringing the total cuts to 2,400.

North General Hospital's planned bankruptcy comes after a long battle with debt at the 31-year-old facility. The hospital planned to cease admitting patients last week, shut down various departments and layoff more than 1,000 employees. The 190-bed facility owes $117 million in state bonds issued in 1989 and is delinquent on $39 million in debt, the Times reported.

It is the second acute care facility to close in New York City in recent months. St. Vincent's Hospital closed in April and filed for bankruptcy.

State officials sought to cast the facility's future in a brighter light. Gov. David Patterson's office announce that the Institute for Family Health, a large health clinic, will lease space at the facility while Health and Hospital Corp, which operates the city's public hospitals, said a 200 bed long-term acute-care facility will be relocated there in about 18 months. That facility is currently operating on Roosevelt Island.

There are also plans to build a new nursing home on the facility's parking lot.

Medical testing is exposing patients to too much radiation, which could soon be the cause of as many as 1 in every 50 cancer cases, MSNBC reported.

Americans get the most medical radiation in the world -- nearly half of all advanced medical procedures that use radiation are conducted in the United States. While we worry about airport scanners, power lines and cell phones, our exposure to radiation has grown sixfold over the past couple of decades, primarily because of exposure to medical radiation. Patients who are injured as a result of excessive exposure to medical radiation should contact a New York City medical malpractice attorney to discuss their rights.

Too much radiation raises the risk for cancer and the risk to patients is growing because of excessive image testing. MSNBC uses as an example the case of a New Hampshire teenager who had undergone 14 CT scans because of kidney stones. After the physician's daughter was given too many scans following a car accident, the doctor did some research at two hospitals. He found 50 patients over a three-year period who had received too much radiation, which he defined as more than 10 CT scans in a lifetime or more than five scans for patients under 40.

The use CT scans, or so-called "super x-rays," has soared over the last decade, often replacing other tests that don't require radiation, including ultrasounds and MRIs. Complicating the matter is the fact that there are no federal regulations governing exposure to medical radiation, except for mammograms. Young women and children are often most at risk, especially at busy imaging centers that don't adjust doses for a patient's size.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has taken notice of the issue and claims to have several safety steps in the works, including the possibility of having device makers print the radiation dose on x-rays and images so doctors and patients are more aware of the exposure. Establishing a radiation medical record that would follow a patient throughout his or her life would also lower the risks.

Using nuclear disasters, like the 1986 meltdown of the Chernobyl power plant, experts believe the risk of cancer increases after exposures of 50 to 150 millisieverts (a measurement of radiation dosage). A CT scan typically involves an exposure of 10 to 20 millisieverts, versus less than .1 for an X-ray and 1 for a mammogram.

A study last year estimated that 4 million Americans get more than 20 millisieverts from medical imaging each year. Another study by Columbia University researchers found that as many as 2 percent of all future cancer cases in the U.S. could be the result of overexposure to radiation in today's medical environment.

Continue reading "Overexposure to medical radiation can lead to New York City medical malpractice claim" »

New York City hospital officials have announced an investigation into unread echocardiograms at Harlem Hospital Center has determined the problem is larger than first thought -- a review of thousands of records has found at least six patients who may have been deprived of necessary medical treatment after their heart tests were not reviewed by doctors. Others claim that hundreds may have already died after not receiving the proper medical care.

The New York Times reports that the unread tests date back to 2005, not 2007 as previously believed. Officials now say the results of 5,000 tests were never read, five-times more than the 1,000 tests initially believed to be involved. Patients who believe they have received inadequate treatment for a heart condition at the hospital should contact a New York City medical malpractice attorney to discuss their rights.

Notes in the margins of an additional 2,000 tests indicate they were read by doctors. However, the tests were left unsigned in violation of medical protocol. All of the tests are being reviewed by a team of doctors from hospitals across the city in an effort to reduce the potential harm to patients, according to a spokeswoman for the city's Health and Hospitals Corporation, which operates New York City public hospitals, including the Harlem facility.

Six patients have been contacted because test results indicated additional treatment options may have been necessary, however there is no indication patients received the needed care. The Times reported that doctors familiar with the investigation believe more than 200 patients with unread tests have died. City officials have said it's premature to link deaths to unread tests. A doctor recruited to help read the tests has estimated that half showed abnormalities. Again, city officials have declined to discuss the case.

The problems surfaced during a review by city officials on May 20. The tests were apparently being read by technicians, who flagged those they thought needed the attention of a physician. The rest of the tests were left in the computer and essentially ignored. The State Health Department is also investigating. Some doctors at Harlem Hospital complained they were so short staffed that they had to rely on technicians to review the results. As we recently reported on our New York Injury Lawyer Blog, budget cuts at city hospitals have resulted in nearly 2,500 planned layoffs.

The Health and Hospitals Corporation contends that other hospitals with a similar or greater caseload have not had a problem keeping up with the volume of tests. The city said it will send out "a letter of reassurance" at the conclusion of its investigation.

Continue reading "Harlem Hospital heart patients may have New York City medical malpractice claim" »

A lighter workload for nurses could save lives and reduce the risk of New York medical malpractice, according to a study published by Health Services Research.

The research followed the implementation of a state law in California, which requires hospitals to maintain minimum levels of nurses on duty, according to a report in the New York Times.

The study looked at more than 1.1 million surgeries conducted at 800 hospitals in three states -- California, New Jersey and Pennsylvania. In California, nurses are limited to attending to no more than 5 patients at a time, while nurses in New Jersey and Pennsylvania attended to more than six.

Researchers concluded that 225 hospital deaths in New Jersey (or 13.9 percent of all surgery deaths) and 200 deaths in Pennsylvania (or 10.6 percent of surgery deaths) could have been prevented with rules similar to those in place in California.

As we reported recently on our New York Injury Lawyer Blog, hospital staffing levels, and even the day of week or time of day you visit a hospital, can affect your risk of medical malpractice. Hospital budget cuts, short staffing, overcrowding and overworked nurses, doctors or other medical professionals, can all contribute to the risk of medical malpractice or surgical or medical negligence.

The report also found a higher degree of job satisfaction among California nurses, who were less likely to leave their jobs or the nursing profession.

The study found nurses treated, on average, one less patient at a time in California -- and two less patients on medical and surgical units -- and that the reduction in workload was associated with a reduced risk of patient mortality.

Continue reading "Nursing workload may impact risk of medical malpractice at New York City medical facilities" »

New York City's hospital system has announced plans to lay off another 500 workers, the Associated Press reports.

Hospital staffing is becoming an increasing issue and puts patients at higher risk of medical malpractice. As we reported earlier this year on our New York Injury Lawyer Blog, the time of day or day of the week that you check into a hospital -- and what hospital you choose -- can have an impact on the care and treatment you receive.

Patients admitted on the weekend are often at increased risk because of understaffing and other issues, including inadequate care and increased risk of hospital infections.

The journal Medical Care published a recent study noting the difference in how hospitals measure adequate care standards. While one hospital may experience problem care at an occupancy rate of 75 percent, another hospital does not manifest issues of concern until it reaches 90 percent occupancy.

Frequently, the level of staffing is the primary driver of quality-of-care. When finances dictate staffing levels, patient care suffers with the increased risk of negligent or inadequate care and the increased likelihood of hospital error.

New York City's Health and Hospital Corp has already shed 1,300 employees and the latest announcement brings to 2,400 the number of planned job cuts. Combined, they represent about 10 percent of the hospital system's 39,000 employees. Although the system contends the layoffs will mostly affect staff and trade workers, it is also planning to close clinics and combine outpatient services as it aims to close a $1.2 billion budget gap.

The Wall Street Journal reports the hospital system will also end contracts with "a significant number" of physicians.

The financial shortfall accounts for nearly 20 percent of the budget used to operate the system's 11 hospitals. Five children's clinics would be closed and pediatric specialties would be combined. About 135 of 650 beds for long-term patients would be eliminated, as would 300 of 2,300 skilled-nursing beds.

The announced staff reductions come in the wake of the closure of St. Vincent's Hospital, which filed for bankruptcy last month, and a report by the Associated Press, which found New York hospitals are among the weakest in the nation financially.

Continue reading "Budget cuts at New York City hospitals increase the risk of medical malpractice, hospital negligence" »

The Federal government is moving to increase oversight of medical devices, including a move last week to better regulate automated pumps that deliver intravenous drugs, food and other solutions to patients.

The infusion pumps are among the most problematic medical devices on the market, with more than 10,000 complaints annually and more that 75 product recalls over the last five years; patients who are injured by a defective medical device should contact an experienced New York City medical malpractice attorney to discuss their rights.

The Food and Drug Administration cited the 10,000 complaints in issuing preliminary guidelines that will require manufacturers of infusion pumps to supply the agency with more testing data on the devices before they can be approved for sale. The government said it has received 710 reports of patient deaths in the last five years, although FDA officials say they think the true number may be significantly higher. Causes of death have included problems with the devices, including drug overdoses resulting from human error in loading the pumps or software malfunctions within the pumps, according to the New York Times.

An estimated 2 million pumps are in use in hospitals and clinics and hundreds of thousands are used by patients at home. The devices deliver intravenous food, fluids, pain medication, insulin and cancer treatments.

The new oversight comes as the Obama Administration moves to rehabilitate the agency, which has been criticized in recent years as little more than a rubber stamp for big business. Under particular scrutiny, is the agency's Center for Devices and Radiological Health, which is charged with overseeing critical medical products, including heart implants, imaging equipment and infusion pumps.

Dr. Jeffrey E. Shuren, the center's new director, said the agency has determined that the pumps could be made far safer and that the agency's aggressive new approach could soon extend to other types of medical devices.

While tougher enforcement is certainly welcome from a patient-safety standpoint, it is also another example of the critical need for patients to aggressively protect their own rights when dealing with the medical industry. As we reported earlier this month on our New York Injury Lawyer blog, a report found positive reviews of Avandia, a controversial diabetes medication linked to heart damage, were apparently influenced by payments from pharmaceutical companies.

Continue reading "Defective infusion pumps could be cause of New York medical malpractice; government promises crackdown" »

An analysis of reviews and articles regarding Avandia, the controversial diabetes drug linked to heart damage, found experts paid by the drug manufacturer have been more likely to draw positive conclusions about the drug's safety, according to the New York Times.

As we reported earlier this year on our New York Injury Lawyer blog, government officials have recommended the drug be removed from the market, contending the drug is linked to hundreds of deaths each month from heart attacks and heart failures.

Hundreds of studies, reviews and opinion pieces have been published about Avandia since 2007, often drawing different conclusions about the drug's safety. Avandia, or rosiglitazone, is prescribed, along with diet and exercise, to help control blood glucose levels in patients with Type 2 diabetes. The New England Journal of Medicine published a review of studies in 2007, concluding that the drug was associated with a significant increase in the risk for heart attack.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has since imposed a "black box" safety warning on the medication.

Now the journal BMJ published the results of research contending that, of 202 Avandia articles reviewed, 87 percent of authors with a favorable opinion had a potential conflict of interest with the drug's maker, GlaxoSmithKline, including financial compensation paid by the company or one of its competitors. Of authors with an unfavorable opinion, only 20 percent had received money from the company.

A spokesperson for GlaxoSmithKline noted only 10 of the articles reviewed were original scientific research and said a distinction needed to be made between those and the many articles classified as opinion pieces.

Continue reading "Avandia heart attack patients may have New York City medical malpractice claim; report finds drug supporters often paid by manufacturer" »

An annual government report this week reaffirmed that hospital-acquired infections continue to be a critical issue facing hospital patients and are responsible for an estimated 100,000 deaths per year, according to a report in the New York Times.

As our New York Medical Malpractice attorneys reported last month on our Injury Lawyer blog, more than 1.7 million patients a year are injured by largely preventable hospital infections.

Despite emphasis on prevention and threats of government sanctions, hospitals continue to see increased rates of post-operative infections (up 8 percent year-over-year), and catheter-associated urinary tract infections (up 4 percent), according to the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

While the study found a 12 percent decrease in post-operative pneumonia, we reported last month that hospital pneumonia is one of the leading causes of fatal hospital infections, claiming the lives of 10 percent of those inflicted. Sepsis also remains a major concern, killing 1 in 5 patients who are infected.

Patients who contracted either infection spent an average of 10-14 more days in the hospital at a cost of $30,000 to $45,000. The report called for "urgent attention" to address the issue of hospital-acquired infections.

Agency Director Dr. Carolyn M. Clancy said projects nationwide have proved remarkably effective in reducing infection rates simply by adhering to basic standards for hand hygiene, disinfection of patients, sterile handling of equipment and proper use of antibiotics.

The government has instituted new mandates that will penalize hospitals with high rates of infection, although enforcement won't start until 2015.

Continue reading "Government calls for "urgent attention" to address issue of hospital infections" »

We are all inundated daily with TV commercials listing the long laundry list of possible symptoms and side effects associated with prescription medications. But a new report in the New England Journal of Medicine argues doctors, researchers and drug makers are not listening closely enough to patient reports of symptoms associated with ingesting prescription medication.

Serious or fatal drug reactions can be a cause for medical malpractice in New York City and elsewhere. Additionally, a doctor or medical professional's failure to listen to a patient's symptoms can lead to misdiagnosis or failure to diagnose a serious medical condition.

Direct reporting from patients is rarely even used during drug approval or clinical trials, according to the report's author, Dr. Ethan Basch, of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York.

If patient input is sought at all, it usually comes from doctors or nurses, who write their own impression of how a patient is feeling, according to an article in the New York Times.

Dr. Basch reports that doctors and nurses "systematically downgrade the severity of patients' symptoms" and sometimes miss side effects altogether. "There is a sensibility among some old-school clinicians that they have a better sense of their patients' experience than patients do themselves," he said.

Once a drug is on the market, the Food and Drug Administration's Medwatch system allows doctors and patients to report adverse symptoms. But it is a passive system that awaits reports of problems instead of proactively seeking input from patients.

So the next time you hear the lengthy list of possible side effects of a prescription drug being advertised on television, keep in mind it might reflect little more than the medical profession's opinions regarding a drug's safety. And, just because a side effect is not listed, certainly does not mean you might not be experiencing a serious adverse reaction to a prescribed medication.

Continue reading "Failure to diagnose drug reactions can be case of New York medical malpractice, defective pharmaceuticals" »

When you check-in to a hospital could have an impact on the care and treatment you receive, according to an article in the New York Times.

Patients admitted on the weekend can be at increased risk of medical malpractice in New York City, including negligence, understaffing, inadequate care and even an increased risk of hospital infections,

While New York City hospitals may make a concerted effort to mitigate any adverse effects these conditions have on their patients, the fact remains that a potential medical malpractice situation may arise if some of these areas of concern are not adequately monitored.

According to a study published this month in the journal Medical Care, every hospital has its own levels by which adequate care standards are measured. While one facility may be able to provide proper and attentive care while operating at an overall bed occupancy rate of 70%, another hospital may not reach a threshold for concern until they reach a 90% occupancy rate.

The same applies when it comes to nurse-to-patient ratios, the weekend availability of your physician and even the number of patients carrying the influenza virus within a particular hospital at the time you are admitted.

Doctors and medical professionals point out that the patient themselves have some control over reducing their risks involving these key conditions, particularly in a non-emergency situation, such as an elective surgery. The more information you have regarding the hospital's current occupancy rate, whether your doctor is going to be accessible during your stay, the number of staff on duty and whether or not the facility is treating a large number of flu-infected patients, the easier it is for you to make an informed decision regarding the timing of your admission.

Continue reading "Medical malpractice at New York City hospitals can be a matter of timing" »

More than 1,500 people died accidental deaths in New York City during 2008, according to the Summary of Vital Statistics, recently released by New York City's Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and reported by The New York Times.

Infant deaths: New York City's infant mortality rate was 5.5 infant deaths per 1,000 live births -- down 20 percent from the 6,9 per 1,000 births recorded in 1999.

Surgical or medical error: 59 deaths were reported as a result of complications of surgical or medical care.

Work accidents: 90 people died as a result of occupational injuries, including:
- 10 in transportation accidents
- 26 as a result of violence in the workplace
- 29 in falls
- 31 work fatalities were attributed to construction accidents
- 3 fatal taxicab accidents
-2 deaths involving police or fire protection

A total of 1,651 deaths were classified as accidents and included:
- 299 deaths involving traffic accidents
- 171 pedestrian deaths
- 23 deaths involving bicyclists
- 14 deaths involving railway or subway accidents
- 388 deaths involving fatal falls
- 8 drowning deaths

Subtitled "The Conquest of Pestilence in New York City," the reported noted accidental deaths have declined by 8.8 percent in the last decade. But the rate of accidental deaths has not declined nearly as fast as other deaths, including homicide, which declined 17.5 percent during the same period.

Continue reading "More than 1,500 accidental deaths recorded in New York City during 2008" »