Miami Personal Injury Blog

A recent investigation has made going through surgery a much more scary experience. According to an investigation by NBC News, surgical tools are often not being properly cleaned, leaving blood, tissue and other bodily debris from previous surgical procedures on the tools to be used on other patients in later surgeries. Even more disturbing, the nationwide investigation revealed that the problem with such surgical errors is getting worse.

In addition, the investigation revealed that improperly cleaned surgical tools can be detrimental to the patient's health. In a particularly disturbing case, seven surgical patients at a Texas hospital contracted potentially lethal infections when dirty arthroscopic shavers were used in knee operations and other procedures.

After the infections were discovered, the hospital and the Centers for Disease Control closed down the operating rooms for two weeks. In an effort to prevent future outbreaks, technicians who clean the surgical instruments after each operation, must inspect the inside of each shaver with a miniature video camera to ensure that it is clean before the next operation.

In 2007, Carissa Ubersox had just completed college and was beginning her career as pediatric nurse. The then-24-year-old also began her use of the birth control pill, Yaz, which boasted to clear up acne and minimize premenstrual syndrome and bloating. However, three months later, the young nurse began suffering from leg aches. Few would have guessed that she would soon suffer massive pulmonary emboli, lie in a coma for two weeks and become blind. Ubersox, like many other women, can link her medical troubles to one source-the drug Yaz.

Introduced in 2005, Yaz quickly became one of the nation's bestselling birth control pills, and after 2006 generated nearly $2 billion in revenue for its maker, Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals. The drug contains drospirenone, a man-made hormone that mimics progesterone, the naturally occurring female hormone.

If your Miami doctor prescribed Prempro to treat menopause, a recent court ruling may be of interest to you. On December 6, 2011, a Philadelphia jury issued a $72 million verdict against drug-maker Pfizer and its drug Prempro. The jury found that three plaintiffs - all women in their 60s - developed breast cancer because they took Prempro or a combination of its ingredients. One woman received $20 million in compensatory damages; another was awarded $27.85 million; and the third received $24.75 million.

Over 6 million women have taken Prempro to relieve common menopause symptoms like mood swings, night sweats, hot flashes and vaginal symptoms prior to a 2002 study by the National Institutes of Health that revealed Prempro may cause cancer, specifically breast cancer. Prempro sales peaked around $2 billion but have decreased since the NIH report was issued linking the dangerous drug to cancer.

Pharmaceuticals manufacturer Merck & Co. has reached a settlement with the states of Florida, New York and South Carolina over claims that the company misled state officials about the dangers surrounding the painkiller Vioxx. The drug was taken off the market in 2004 after it was shown to increase users' risk of heart attacks and other cardiovascular problems.

The three states filed lawsuits against Merck in 2007 and 2008, alleging that Vioxx was a dangerous product and that Merck did not adequately warn consumers and doctors about the risks associated with the drug. The states sought reimbursement for the money state health care plans spent on Vioxx prescriptions. They argued that the company used false information to induce doctors to prescribe the drug.

The amount of the settlement has not yet been made public. When then-Florida attorney general Bill McCollum filed suit against the drug manufacturer in 2008, the state requested $80 million in reimbursement.

The pleasure of boating in beautiful coastal waters is one of the best things about South Florida and a draw to the many tourists who visit our beaches, charter fishing boats or embark on cruise ships for Caribbean vacations. But news of yet another boating fatality at the Key West World Championship of offshore powerboat racing should serve as a somber reminder of the perils of boating.

The early November death of a Sarasota boater who suffered critical injuries when his 38-foot Superboat 850-class catamaran rolled over twice during the seventh and final lap of the race came just three days after two Missouri racers died when their 46-foot catamaran crashed in a fatal Florida accident in Key West harbor. The partner of the Sarasota racer suffered only minor injuries and was released later in the day.

A Sunday afternoon trip to the beach led to what should be an unusual accident: two sunbathers were hit by a pickup truck as they lay on the beach.

A beach vendor was closing up shop, collecting umbrellas and chairs, when he ran over the beachgoers. The victims convalesced in the hospital while the driver was cited for careless driving. The owner of the business expressed concern about the victims. Unfortunately, the pickup-truck driver is not the first to cause injury to Miami Beach visitors.

Although this most recent beach accident was not a fatal accident, the extent of the injuries suffered by those who were hit by the pickup truck have not been released.

A roofing project at a Miami apartment complex was the scene of a fatal 50-foot-fall for a Florida construction worker last week. This type of construction site accident -- a fall from heights -- causes the greatest number of construction worker deaths than any other accident or incident in the industry on an annual basis.

According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), 6.5 million people are at work each day across the United States at over 250,000 construction sites. Protecting workers from known safety issues, preventing construction site accidents and providing training on appropriate safety measures is every employers' responsibility. OSHA has created set standards for construction site safety to give guidance to employers as well as to protect employees from workplace dangers.

A roofing tile delivery went all wrong, ending in the death of a Bonita Springs construction worker. The worker was walking between the delivery truck and a forklift when the forklift driver reversed and backed over him.

The cause of the fatal construction accident was both operator error and improper maintenance. The forklift's reverse alert was not functioning and a mirror was broken, making it difficult to see the worker behind the forklift operator. The operator also lacked experience and training which, officials say, contributed to the accident.

Occupational Safety and Health Administration investigators (OSHA) are meeting with the owner of J&A Loading to determine if there were any additional safety violations. Police are considering the death an accident.

Preventing Florida Forklift, Crane and Heavy Equipment Injuries

Both federal and state workplace safety regulations exist to prevent these types of accidents. But, Florida forklift accident attorneys have seen too many instances of regulations not being followed, leading to serious injury and, in some cases, death.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently issued warnings about the use of transvaginal mesh for the treatment of Pelvic Organ Prolapse (POP), a condition caused by the weakening of the body's own internal support structure for the bladder, uterus or bowels. According to the FDA, transvaginal mesh creates more risk of complications than other similar options, but provides little to no additional benefit to the patient.

Following the announcement, consumer advocacy group Public Citizen urged the FDA to formally recall the product. Rather than asking, "surgeons to carefully consider all other treatment options and to make sure that their patients are fully informed of potential complications from surgical mesh," according to an FDA release, Public Citizen is requesting that the FDA order all marketing of transvaginal mesh to stop and require that transvaginal mesh be classified as Class III devices needing premarket approval.

Side Effects of Transvaginal Mesh May Affect Quality of Life of Treated Women

Issues related to the use of transvaginal mesh to treat POP are not life-threatening, but can interfere with basic day-to-day bodily functions. Some patients may need a second surgery to actually remove the mesh after side effects develop. Transvaginal mesh attorneys are working with women who have suffered from the side effects of the vaginal mesh implants that were intended to help, not hurt or harm them further.