Boston Injury Lawyer Blog

August 23, 2012

Child Injury Risks Prompt CPSC Recalls of CareBears Pacifier, Kickboard USA Scooter, PBTeen Bunk Beds, Babylicious Cloth Crib Fringe, Bumbo Baby Seats, Toysmith Bracelets, and My Clothes Children’s Pajamas

Every month the US Consumer Product Safety Commission recalls products that may pose an injury risk to consumers. While we would like to think that manufacturers and distributors are doing everything to make and sell consumer goods that are free from defects and other safety hazards, this is not always the case. In this blog post, our Boston injury lawyers would like to recap of some of the latest CPSC recalls announced this month over products that pose an injury risk to kids and babies.

CareBears Pacifiers: Importer IDM Group and the CPSC are recalling approximately 119,000 of these pacifiers because they don’t meet federal safety standards. Should the pacifier nipple come off its base, it can pose a choking danger to kids. No injuries have been reported so far. This product was made in China.

Children’s Scooter: Importer Kickboard USA is cooperating with the CPSC to recall about 5,600 scooters. Kids are at risk of suffering laceration injuries should the plastic platform that is over the front wheel base of the scooter break.

August 21, 2012

Hot Weather Can Place the Health of Boston Nursing Home Patients at Risk

by Altman & Altman

When the temperature is too hot, Massachusetts nursing home patients-especially the elderly can be placed at risk of developing serious heat-related illnesses and complications unless the proper precautions are executed. If you believe that Boston nursing home neglect caused your family member to become ill because of heat stress, heat stroke, or any other reason, please contact Altman & Altman LLP today to request your free case evaluation.

Heat Stress and Heat Stroke

When in very hot weather, the body will up its blood flow and perspire to regulate its own temperature. However, because many elderly persons’ bodies don’t adapt as well to the heat-many may be taking medications that make it harder for their bodies to self-regulate-this can cause heat stress, which can bring about other health complications. (Also, chronic medical conditions, such as diabetes, a heart condition, or circulatory issues can make it hard for the body to emit the normal adjustment response to high temperatures.) Heat stress may even turn to heat stroke. When this happens, the body’s temperature can hit 106 degrees or higher in 10 to 15 minutes, potentially causing permanent disability or death if medical care isn’t provided right away.

August 17, 2012

Brockton Tractor-Trailer Driver Suffers Electrical Shock After His Truck Strikes Power Lines on I-95 in Attleboro

by Altman & Altman

Joseph O. Irorere, a 45-year-old trucker, has been hospitalized, after he received an electrical shock when his 2001 Mack 600 tractor-trailer hit power lines that were sagging on Interstate 95 in Attleboro. According to State Police, the incident happened when the Brockton man got out of the vehicle. Their preliminary probe found that the wires on both sides of the road had sagged due to a structural issue involving a utility pole.

Electrical Shock

Electrical shock can cause serious injuries as the electrical current enters the body. There may be electric burns, internal injuries, damage to tissues, muscles, or nerves, thermal burns, brain damage, organ damage, cardiac arrest, spinal cord injuries, hand/foot injuries, deformity, or even death. Common causes of Boston electric shock accidents:

August 16, 2012

Templeton, Massachusetts Bar Brawl Sends Man to the Hospital

by Altman & Altman

A man who was accused of putting his arm around someone else’s girlfriend at the Candlelight Café in Templeton last Friday has since had to get 32 staples to his head and 100 stitches. He was watching a friend perform karaoke when Brian Ronn and William Felone allegedly assaulted him with beer bottles.

The victim claims that his arm was already resting on the bar when the woman sat down next to him. Felone and Ronne have been arraigned on assault and battery with a dangerous weapon charges. They have both pleaded not guilty. At this time, it is not known whether the victim intends to file a Massachusetts personal injury lawsuit against his alleged assailants.

Property owners have a responsibility to protect their visitors, patrons, customers, and others from becoming the victim of violent crimes or getting seriously hurt in other ways. Even if the premise owner or an employee did not do anything to cause the injury or the accident, they could still be held liable. It is a good idea to explore your legal options to find out whether you have grounds for a case.

August 15, 2012

California Drug Company Agrees to Settlement

by Altman & Altman

The nation’s largest drug wholesaler (according to revenue) has agreed to pay $151 million to 30 separate states in a settlement over claims that the company overcharged for about 1,400 brand-name medications from 2001 to 2009. According to state and federal officials, McKesson Corp. is accused of deliberately overcharging for prescription drugs in order to earn a profit. Widely-used prescriptions, such as Lipitor and Prozac, were allegedly marked up by as much as 25 percent.

The company allegedly inflated the prices when reporting to First DataBank Inc., which is a publisher of medication prices and is used by most state Medicaid programs to set payment rates. New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman released a statement saying that the settlement “holds McKesson accountable for attempting to make millions of dollars in illegal profits.” New York is set to receive $64 million out of the total amount in restitution. California and Illinois are also among the states to receive money from the settlement.

Perhaps most troubling is the fact that the company faced similar allegations back in 2008 and ended up paying almost $500 million as a result. The amount was distributed to both private and public payers. However, McKesson continues to deny any wrongdoing and a company spokesman said that it “did not manipulate drug prices” or “violate any laws.”
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August 13, 2012

Grill Cleaning Brushes: An Unexpected Cause of Boston Injury During Summer

by Altman & Altman

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, burn injuries, high cholesterol, and smoke inhalation aren’t the only dangers to watch out for while grilling. Grill-cleaning brush bristles apparently can pose a serious safety hazard if ingested accidentally. This can happen if the sharp, wiry bristles come off while the brush is being used to clean the grill and they then end up getting caught in the food during grilling. Injuries from swallowing these bristles have included soft tissue injuries, puncture wounds, gastrointestinal tract perforations, bladder injuries, sigmoid colon injuries, and other internal injuries, accompanied by severe pain. You may want to speak with a Boston products liability law firm to explore your legal options.

Last Month, CBSNews.com reported that the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report’s July 6 journal issue noted six cases involving grill cleaning brush ingestion at a Providence, Rhode Island hospital between March 2011 and June of this year. That’s just one facility. Adding insult to injury is that often, these bristles are so tiny that they can be hard to detect on X-rays, especially if an ER doctor, physician, or radiologist doesn’t know what to look for.

If you or someone you love suffered injuries from swallowing grill cleaning brush bristles, you may have grounds for filing a Boston personal injury lawsuit against the brush’s manufacturer. Another possible liable party might be the host of the barbecue or the person that used the brush to clean the grill. A lot of this will depend on your injuries and the specifics regarding how they happened.

August 9, 2012

Boston Birthing Malpractice Can Leave Entire Families With Lifelong Costs, Pain, and Suffering

by Altman & Altman

Having a child should be one of the most joyful times of your life. Unfortunately, due to medical mistakes that can occur during pregnancy, delivery, or afterwards, this isn’t always the case. In Massachusetts, our Boston medical malpractice lawyers represent families whose children have sustained serious birthing injuries because of negligence by a gynecologist, obstetrician, or some other medical professional.

Common causes of birthing injuries:
• Forceps misuse • Vacuum extraction misuse
• Failure to properly monitor the vitals of both the baby and mother • Inadequate prenatal care
• Not responding to fetal distress quickly enough • Delay performing a needed C-section • Improper administration of Pitocin • Poor post-delivery care • Circumcision mistakes

Common birthing injuries:
• Forceps bruising • Caput succedaneum, often caused by vacuum extraction • Cephalohematoma • Facial paralysis, which can be caused by improper forceps use • Brachial Palsy • Cerebral Palsy • Fractured bones • Brain damage
It is devastating to a parent anytime a child is hurt, but for a son or daughter to suffer permanent injuries while being brought in the world is catastrophic. It is also an error that can leave a family not just with lifelong medical expenses but with permanent damage in that their child will never have the life they had dreamed for them and their family life will be irrevocably altered because of someone’s else’s careless mistakes.

In addition to injuries to the infant, mothers too are at risk of serious injuries, including a ruptured uterus, organ injuries, lacerations to the rectum, which can cause other serious health complications, C-section related injuries, anesthesia mistakes, and death.

Birth Injury

Birth Injuries and Cerebral Palsy, Nolo

More Blog Posts:
$5.8M Massachusetts Heart Attack Malpractice Verdict Awarded to Family of Deceased Harvard Man, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, July 17, 2012

Massachusetts Hospitals Seek Medical Malpractice “Road to Reform”, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, April 18, 2012

Poor Patients are Less Likely to File Medical Malpractice Lawsuits, Reports New Study, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, February 27, 2012 Continue reading

August 9, 2012

58 Massachusetts Pedestrian Accident Deaths Reported in 2010

by Altman & Altman

Of the 314 Massachusetts traffic fatalities that took place in 2010, 58 of them involved pedestrians. These figures were recently reported in the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s 2010 Traffic Safety Report.

The NHTSA also reported that in this country, on average, there was one pedestrian death that occurred every two hours and one pedestrian injury every eight minutes that year. Nationally, there were 4,280 pedestrian fatalities and 70,000 pedestrian injuries that year-a 4% increase from 2009, but a 13% decrease from 2001.

Other NHTSA 2010 Traffic Safety Facts:

August 6, 2012

Zimmer KnexGen and DePuy Knee Implants Linked to Patient Injuries

by Altman & Altman

With over 4 million people in the US now using artificial knees, it is essential that the manufacturers of knee replacement devices make sure that their products are free from any design defects or safety issues that could cause serious injury to wearers. Unfortunately, there have been numerous problems reported by patients, who many of whom have gone on to file knee replacement lawsuits seeking damages.

Among the safety issues and complications cited by plaintiffs:

• Premature device failure • The artificial knee implant coming loose or giving out • Severe pain • Swelling • Persistent warmth or heat in the knee

August 2, 2012

Settlement Reached in Vaginal-Mesh Implant Case

by Altman & Altman

Jurors have awarded $5.5 million in damages to a California woman and her husband due to injuries the woman sustained from a vaginal implant. It is the first case over such devices to go to trial. However, hundreds of lawsuits have been filed against various companies alleging that the implants caused organ damage.

In this case, the jury determined July 20 that Christine Scott and her husband deserved the damage award as a result of the injuries caused by an implant made by New Jersey-based Bard, Boston Scientific Corp., according to Elaine Houghton, one of the couple’s attorneys. C.R. Bard Inc.’s officials were found by the jury to be negligent in the handling of the devices, which are “used to treat pelvic organs that bulge, or prolapse, or to deal with incontinence.” According to Houghton, the jury was initially asked to consider awarding up to $11 million in damages.

Regarding the panel’s decision, Houghton said: “They seemed to focus on evidence we produced showing that Bard didn’t properly test the product before putting it on the market.” A copy of the verdict sheet revealed that the jury awarded the couple $5.5 million-60 percent of which Bard was found responsible for. The other 40 percent of the liability was attributed to Dr. Tillakarasi Kannappan, who surgically implanted the device in 2008. However, he will not be held responsible for the actual payment of this share of the settlement, which amounts to roughly $1.9 million. Attorneys representing the doctor did not return a call seeking comment.
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