Duodenoscope Infection Lawsuits: Olympus Faced Similar Infection Complaints Over Their Bronchoscopes

Southern Med Law Is Investigating Duodenoscope Infection Lawsuits Alleging Medical Scopes Cause Superbug Infection That Lead To Sickness And Death.

As duodenoscope infection lawsuits continue to be filed against Olympus Corp., the Los Angeles Times discovered the company had problems 15 years ago with a similar medical device that sickened patients. Olympus recalled its bronchoscopes from U.S. hospitals in 2001 after receiving reports that the scopes can become contaminated and cause infections in patients. Current filings of duodenoscope infection lawsuits contend that Olympus’ medical device has sickened and fatally injured patients by transmitting Carbapenem-resistant enterobacteriaceae (CRE), a “superbug” bacteria that is nearly resistant to antibiotics.

The Los Angeles Times reported that Olympus found in 2001 that bacteria could be trapped inside of a loose biopsy port in its bronchoscope and spread to patients. The scope was used to examine the throat, trachea and lungs. Olympus recalled the bronchoscopes yet patients continued to fall ill because the company was not aggressive in contacting hospitals about the problem, according to the news report. After an outbreak occurred at Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore, doctors there published a study in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2003 urging manufacturers to make cleaning a priority when designing their medical scopes.
[latimes.com/business/la-fi-olympus-recall-20151220-story.html, Los Angeles Times, December 20, 2015]

“The news report also mentioned that in 2001, Olympus blamed hospital staff for not maintaining the machines that clean the bronchoscopes. The company also blamed the hospitals after the recent CRE outbreak involving its duodenoscopes was disclosed,” says Dr. François Blaudeau, founder of Southern Med Law.

The Firm’s medical device attorneys are offering duodenoscope lawsuit evaluations to patients or their surviving loved ones who were diagnosed with a superbug infection following an ECRP procedures. To arrange for a free, no obligation legal consultation, please call Southern Med Law today, at (205) 547-5525. More information about this issue can be obtained by visiting www.southernmedlaw.com.

Duodenoscopes are used during endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) to diagnose and treat problems with gallstones or pancreatic cancer. The flexible lighted tube, with a tiny camera attached to the tip, is inserted through a patient’s throat, mouth, or stomach, and then into the top of the small intestine, called the duodenum. In addition to Olympus America Inc., duodenoscopes are also manufactured by Fujifilm Medical Systems, U.S.A., Inc., and Hoya Corp.’s Pentax Life Care Division. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a warning about duodenoscopes in February 2015 after two patients died and 39 were sickened in an CRE outbreak at UCLA’s Ronald Reagan Medical Center between October 2014 and January 2015. The Olympus duodendoscope was linked to the outbreak there and to an outbreak at Virginia Mason Medical Center in Seattle where 18 people died and 21 fell ill from 2012 to 2014.
[graphics.latimes.com/superbug-scope/, Los Angeles Times, December 19, 2015]

Duodenoscope infection lawsuits are not only being filed against Olympus, but also against Custom Ultrasonics over its machine designed to decontaminate the duodenoscope. Both companies are named as defendants in a wrongful death complaint filed in November on behalf of a North Carolina woman whose husband died after having a procedure in January 2013 in which a CRE-contaminated scope was used. The woman contends in her lawsuit that the scope had a design flaw that allowed the harboring of biological debris in its chamber, including the CRE infection that was the cause of her husband’s death. (Case No: 2:15-cv-0246, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania)

About Southern Med Law and Filing A Duodenoscope Infection Lawsuit Claim: Southern Med Law is an experienced law firm that provides personable legal representation to the men and women across the country who have been victims of negligent personal injuries, medical malpractice, dangerous drugs, defective medical devices and defective products. Southern Med Law possesses a deep understanding of the complex medical and legal questions at issue in all manner of product liability and personal injury claims. They’re not afraid to take on the nation’s largest corporations in their pursuit of justice, and are committed to ensuring that all victims have access to the type of aggressive legal advocacy that assures success.

Southern Med Law
François M. Blaudeau, MD JD FACHE FCLM Esquire
2224 1st Avenue North
Birmingham, Alabama 35203
Phone: 205-547-5525

Fax: 205-547-5526
francois@sml-legal.i-mlaw.com