Adverse reactions to medications send more than half a million children to clinics or emergency rooms each year, new data shows. According to statistics analyzed by researchers at Children’s Hospital Boston, 22 percent of 585,922 adverse drug events resulted in an emergency room visit among children under 18. The results of the study are scheduled to be published in October issue of the journal Pediatrics.
The family of a California man has filed a lawsuit accusing an emergency room doctor of failing to resuscitate their father in order to steal his Rolex watch. In the lawsuit, the family claims that Dr. Cleveland Enmon and Catholic Healthcare West are negligent for wrongful death, conspiracy and other damages. A grand jury indicted Enmon last month on charges stemming from the incident.
A Georgia jury has ordered an Atlanta men’s clinic to pay $9.25 million to a 53-year-old man who suffered permanent damage from an erectile dysfunction treatment. Following a six-day trial, jurors found that Boston Men’s Health Center Inc. was negligent for prescribing the plaintiff a drug called papaverine, an erectile dysfunction treatment no longer recommended by the Food and Drug Administration. The award includes $8.5 million in punitive damages for acting with intent to cause harm.
A Florida attorney has filed a class-action lawsuit on behalf of the elderly residents of a low-income apartment complex owned by the Archdiocese of Miami. According to the lawsuit, St. Andrews Towers in Coral Springs failed to address a history of mold issues before recruiting residents who may suffer breathing problems. The lawsuit seeks unspecified compensation for medical costs, mental anguish and other damages.
Supreme court judges in two states (Georgia and Maryland) are scheduled to decide whether to do away with limits on noneconomic damages in medical malpractice cases. In Georgia, justices will decide whether the state’s $350,000 cap violates the state constitution. In Maryland, the state Court of Appeals will decide whether state caps should apply only in cases resolved through arbitration.
A jury has awarded $3.7 million to a woman who developed breast cancer after taking the Wyeth hormone-replacement drug Prempro. Jurors must now decide if Wyeth is liable in the case and whether the drug maker should be required to pay punitive damages. Wyeth and Pfizer’s Pharmacia & Upjohn unit face more than 9,000 lawsuits over hormone-replacement drugs used to treat menopausal symptoms. The case is Barton v. Wyeth Pharmaceuticals Inc.
Two of the nation’s top-selling birth control pills may increase the risk of blood clots, strokes and other health problems, some critics charge. According to lawsuits brought against pharmaceutical giant Bayer, the company failed to properly disclose risks associated with the oral contraceptives Yaz and Yasmin. Earlier this year, the Food and Drug Administration ordered Bayer to correct misleading statements made in marketing for Yaz and Yasmin.
The Food and Drug Administration approved a controversial knee-surgery device after receiving pressure from lawmakers and lobbyists, the Washington Post reports. According to a report released last week by the FDA, regulators seem to have buckled under political pressure from four New Jersey lawmakers with financial ties to ReGen Biologics. The report noted that FDA staff had previously opposed approval of the device.
A Texas jury has awarded more than $4 million to a man who suffered severe complications following a botched bowel surgery. According to attorneys for the plaintiff, Dr. Guillermo Ponce de Leon failed to properly diagnose a leaking bowel caused by the 2003 procedure. The plaintiff ultimately had to have much of his small bowel removed as a result of the error, his attorneys said. The award is believed to be the second largest involving medical malpractice in Fort Bend County history.
A private school in Maryland has agreed to pay about $80,000 to a teacher who claimed that he was fired because he has HIV. According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission lawsuit, the Chesapeake Academy in Arnold violated the Americans with Disabilities Act when it failed to renew the teacher’s contract. Chesapeake Academy did not admit any wrongdoing under the settlement.
