By Eisenberg, Rothweiler, Winkler, Eisenberg & Jeck, P.C. posted in Consumer Safety eNews on Thursday, May 23, 2013
The orthopedic unit of Johnson & Johnson said Thursday that it was phasing out production of all-metal replacement hips, a move reflecting an industrywide trend to abandon the once widely used implants because of high early failure rates.
In 2010, the company, DePuy Orthopaedics, recalled an all-metal model known as the Articular Surface Replacement, or A.S.R., because it was failing just a few years after implant. Typically, artificial hips made from materials like plastic and metal last 15 years or more before they wear out and need to be replaced.
But after that recall, the company continued to sell an all-metal version of a popular hip model called the Pinnacle. In doing so, DePuy insisted that the all-metal Pinnacle was safe and performing on par with other hip replacements, a position it reiterated on Thursday.
On behalf of Eisenberg, Rothweiler, Winkler, Eisenberg & Jeck, P.C. posted in Car Accidents on Monday, May 20, 2013
Drowsy driving is a danger that can prove to be as fatal and negligent as drunk driving. However, drowsy driving in Pennsylvania can also prove to be a far more insidious issue because it is nearly impossible to prove that a driver was asleep if the drowsy driver causes an accident. This often means little justice for families of victims killed by drowsy drivers.
From 2000 to 2010, it is estimated that around 11,000 motor vehicle deaths were caused by a drowsy drivers. Particularly for drivers of passenger vehicles, it is incredibly difficult to prosecute a driver for falling asleep. A mother of three that lost her husband two years ago when he was killed by a drowsy driver says of the car accident, "The pain we experience is beyond description and continues to be."
On behalf of Eisenberg, Rothweiler, Winkler, Eisenberg & Jeck, P.C. posted in Car Accidents on Friday, May 17, 2013
It is always devastating to read a local report that talks about a driver or passenger that perished in a car accident while unrestrained. In many instances, these tragedies are particularly sad because so many could have been avoided with the use of a seat belt.
We never pass on an opportunity to emphasize how critical wearing a seat belt is in mitigating against the risk of catastrophic injury or death in the event of a car accident. Whether a driver is old, young, pregnant, male or female, seat belts are critical for the safety of all.
By Eisenberg, Rothweiler, Winkler, Eisenberg & Jeck, P.C. posted in Car Accidents on Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Three Ohio drivers are suing Ford Motor Co., claiming the company's six-cylinder EcoBoost engine is defective.
The lawsuit says the 3.5-liter V6 EcoBoost engine can shudder, shake and then rapidly lose power while drivers are accelerating. Two of the plaintiffs, a married couple, say their 2010 Ford Taurus SHO has lost power and stalled on multiple occasions. The third says he has lost power when he was accelerating in his F-150 pickup.
The lawsuit says more than 100 drivers have complained to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration about the V6 EcoBoost rattling or losing power. Ford hasn't recalled any vehicles for the alleged defect, and NHTSA hasn't opened an investigation, which is often the first step in the recall process.
On behalf of Eisenberg, Rothweiler, Winkler, Eisenberg & Jeck, P.C. posted in Product Liability on Monday, May 13, 2013
A pharmaceutical that is safe for an adult to take can be a dangerous drug for a fetus. It is critical for doctors to warn women of child-bearing age of these risks. Pharmaceuticals containing the active ingredient valproate sodium already require a box warning detailing the risk for birth defects, but after additional studies, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is taking additional precautions.
A handful of pharmaceuticals with this active ingredient demonstrate a risk for decreasing the intelligence of children born to mothers taking this medication during pregnancy. Researchers at Emory University found a correlation between pregnant women taking these drugs and having children prone to lower IQ scores, ranging 8 to 11 points below average at 6 years old.
On behalf of Eisenberg, Rothweiler, Winkler, Eisenberg & Jeck, P.C. posted in Medical Malpractice on Friday, May 10, 2013
Rarely does a doctor in Pennsylvania intentionally act in a manner harmful to patients. In instances of a medical mistake, if there is negligence at play then there could be grounds for a medical malpractice claim. However, sometimes the happening is far more egregious than to be classified as a mistake. In some instances health care providers can be criminally charged for the worst levels of care, much like dentist facing charges outside of Pennsylvania.
But what about when there was no mistake? What about when the lapse of care was beyond just negligence? What about when a doctor is intentionally performing procedures to the detriment of a patient's health? A better question: What would ever prompt a doctor to act against a patient's best interest?
In Chicago, several doctors and hospital administrators were recently arrested in an elaborate plan carried out over several years that preyed on vulnerable patients that were elderly or poor to perform medically unnecessary procedures to collect the reimbursement funds from Medicare and Medicaid. In some instances, these doctors would induce the conditions that necessitated such procedures.
On behalf of Eisenberg, Rothweiler, Winkler, Eisenberg & Jeck, P.C. posted in Medical Malpractice on Wednesday, May 8, 2013
One of the most common and insidious mistakes that doctors make is misdiagnosis. Misdiagnosis can happen here in Philadelphia and across the rest of Pennsylvania. Particularly with regards to cancer, timely and accurate diagnosis is imperative for preserving the health and quality of life of a patient. If a cancer diagnosis is delayed or missed, a patient may need to undergo costly, painful and more invasive treatment when the cancer is left to continue growing or metastasize. Misdiagnosis does not occur with just rare forms of cancer or disease either.
An associate professor at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine that studies diagnostic errors says that the occurrence of misdiagnosis is not uncommon. The associate professor says, "This is an enormous problem, the hidden part of the iceberg of medical errors." The associate professor further indicates that while glaringly egregious medical mistakes like operating on the wrong body part or making a medication error grab media headlines more often, the rate of misdiagnosis far eclipses the rates of many other medical mistakes.
By Eisenberg, Rothweiler, Winkler, Eisenberg & Jeck, P.C. posted in Consumer Safety eNews on Tuesday, May 7, 2013
Until it happened to him, Itzhak Brook, a pediatric infectious disease specialist at Georgetown University School of Medicine, didn't think much about the problem of misdiagnosis.
That was before doctors at a Maryland hospital repeatedly told Brook his throat pain was the result of acid reflux, not cancer. The correct diagnosis was made by an astute resident who found the tumor - the size of a peach pit - using a simple procedure that the experienced head and neck surgeons who regularly examined Brook never tried. Because the cancer had grown undetected for seven months, Brook was forced to undergo surgery to remove his voice box, a procedure that has left him speaking in a whisper. He believes that might not have been necessary had the cancer been found earlier.
"I consider myself lucky to be alive," said Brook, now 72, of the 2006 ordeal, which he described at a recent international conference on diagnostic mistakes held in Baltimore. A physician for 40 years, Brook said he was "really shocked" by his misdiagnosis.
On behalf of Eisenberg, Rothweiler, Winkler, Eisenberg & Jeck, P.C. posted in Brain and Spinal Cord Injuries on Friday, May 3, 2013
Understanding what exactly constitutes a traumatic brain injury can be confusing. This is largely because there is a very broad spectrum of symptoms and severities in which a TBI can manifest itself in a victim. The bottom line is that some external force generally injures the brain, yielding lasting damage that can impact a combination of communication, memory, perception, judgment, motor skills and other of life-altering consequences.
Some individuals have their quality of life dramatically diminished when they are made to suffer with a TBI. Across the country, it is estimated that about every 15 seconds an additional individual has their life changed by a TBI. Car accidents are most frequently attributed as the cause of an external force that yields such tragic results.
By Eisenberg, Rothweiler, Winkler, Eisenberg & Jeck, P.C. posted in Car Accidents on Wednesday, May 1, 2013
By many standards, the car accident was routine.
On April 16, 2010, Vernon Holmes was traveling more than 55 miles per hour along Route 40 westbound near Elkton, Md. At Marley Road, a woman pulled into the intersection, directly into the path of his Nissan Murano. He T-boned her passenger side.
Both sustained minor injuries. Ambulances arrived, and in the chaos, Holmes didn't realize something was missing. It wasn't until a paramedic asked him about his airbags that he realized they hadn't gone off. "I said, 'What airbags?'" Holmes recalled.
In the past six months, the number of airbag-related recalls has more than doubled. The malfunctions causing these recalls increase the chance these life-saving devices could fail when they're needed most.
