Hurricane season is officially over, but that doesn’t mean we’re out of the danger zone yet. New Jersey suffered its first major winter storm in November, which managed to paralyze most of the state with its unexpected snowfall totals. At least one NJ resident died, and there were almost 1,000 car accidents. The truth is, winter storms – even storms we’re actually prepared for – cause plenty of injuries and tens of thousands of dollars in [...]
The purpose of knee and hip replacements is to help the patient achieve a better quality of life with less pain and greater mobility. However, too often defective medical implants fail much earlier than they should, creating the need for additional surgery to correct the problem. This can lead to health uncertainty going forward as well as additional medical costs. Metal hip implants U.S. doctors perform more than 300,000 hip replacement surgeries each year, according to [...]
With fall almost upon us, the leaves have begun to change colors – beautiful red, yellow, and orange leaves eventually turn brown and fall to the ground. And while the process proves quitebeautiful, we eventually find them scattered across our sidewalks and lawns, creating a risk of slip and fall accidents. In such cases, the use of a leaf blower has become a major timesaver, blowing leaves into piles and making their collection all the easier. [...]
Every year, more than 250,000 children are seriously injured by unsafe toys. The majority of these victims are boys, and more than 60 percent are younger than 15 years old. Although most toys sold in the United States are relatively safe, when a child you know is harmed, it can be devastating. A defective toy can cause a wide range of injuries, from scrapes, cuts and bruises to fractures or broken bones; and from burns or [...]
In July 2018, Bayer Pharmaceuticals announced that its permanent birth control device Essure would be removed from the market by 2019. The company has already stopped sales outside of the U.S. The company cites declining sales as the reason to pull it from the domestic market. The product has received numerous reports of adverse effects, however, and is now facing thousands of lawsuits. Essure was first made available for sale by Conceptus Inc. in 2002. It [...]
Medical devices come in all shapes, sizes, and functionalities, and they can be lifesavers to people with certain conditions. Often, medical devices remain inside the body to prevent a debilitating condition from developing or worsening. With regulatory processes becoming less strict, however, dangerous products are making their way into the market. When these defective medical devices fail, the consequences can be devastating. Such was the case for a Georgia woman who nearly died due to a [...]
An American drug manufacturer recently issued a nationwide recall for its birth control product, fearing that misplaced capsules in its pill packages could result in unintended pregnancies. The packages should have contained 24 capsules with hormones, followed by four placebo capsules – but that sequence was mistakenly reversed during packaging. The order of the pills may not be noticed by consumers – especially new users – even though the two types of capsules are different colors. [...]
Gastric balloons allow obese patients to lose weight quickly by temporarily controlling their appetite. Recently, however, concerns have surfaced over the safety of gastric balloons after several patients died. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has confirmed that their deaths were related to the devices and are rolling out new safety warnings to accompany them. Balloons Are Effective, But May Carry Hidden Dangers Typically, a gastric balloon is inserted into the patient’s stomach through their throat. [...]
The FDA announced recently that it has over 410 reports of Breast Implant-Associated Anaplastic Large Cell Lymphoma (BIA-ALCL), a form of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. Among those reports there were nine deaths. It was revealed that both textured and smooth implants could lead to this type of cancer, although textured implants were the cause more often. The lawsuit that brought this connection to light names manufacturer Mentor Worldwide. Mentor is a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson. They produce [...]
After several injuries to both children and adults, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has filed an administrative complaint against Britax Child Safety, Inc. due to a design defect that makes their jogging strollers unreasonably dangerous. The complaint was filed after Britax refused to recall the strollers from the market. The CPSC seeks an order declaring that the strollers pose a substantial risk of injury, that Britax stop distributing certain models of its B.O.B. brand [...]
