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Recent Blog Posts in January 2010 |
| January 08, 2010 |
| Dialysis or Kidney Transplant After Colonoscopy |
| Posted By DeCarli Law |
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If you began having serious kidney problems just weeks after a colonoscopy, the cause may have been the Fleet Phospho-Soda or Fleet Phospho soda EZ Prep Bowel Cleansing System you used before your colonoscopy.
Fleet Phospho-Soda and Fleet Phospho soda EZ Prep Bowel Cleansing System were over-the-counter products recommended to cleanse the bowels before a colonoscopy. They are a type of oral sodium phosphate or “OSP.” The FDA issued a safety alert on December 11, 2008, warning that OSPs can cause kidney failure (renal failure), and the Fleet products were recalled from the market. Side effects include dialysis and the need for a kidney transplant.
If you or a loved one used one of these products before a colonoscopy, and are now on dialysis or were forced to have a kidney transplant, you may have a strong legal claim. Contact the attorneys at DeCarli Law for a free, no obligation consultation. As is often the case with legal claims, a short deadline may apply to your claim, so please contact us as soon as possible if you believe you were injured by Fleet Phospho-Soda or Fleet Phospho soda EZ Prep Bowel Cleansing System.
UPDATE: As of August 1, 2010, DeCarli Law is no longer accepting new cases for people injured by Fleet Phospho-Soda or Fleet Phospho soda EZ Prep Bowel Cleansing System.
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| January 08, 2010 |
| 8th Circuit Removes Roadblock for Ocella Injury Lawsuits |
| Posted By DeCarli Law |
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A recent decision from the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals has removed a barrier to women filing lawsuits for side effects from Ocella birth control.
Ocella is the generic version of the oral contraceptive Yasmin. Drug manufacturers have taken the position that injured people cannot sue them when their generic drug labels fail to adequately warn of dangerous side effects. The manufacturers claim that federal law requires them to have the same warning label on the generic version of their drugs that originally appeared on the name-brand version, and they cannot add additional warnings. The manufacturers rely on a legal doctrine called “preemption,” arguing that because their warning label has been approved by the FDA, federal law bars lawsuits against them for not warning of side effects not listed on the label.
A recent 8th Circuit Court of Appeals decision rejected this argument. Mensing v. Wyeth (2009). The plaintiff, Gladys Mensing, had developed tardive dyskinesia after taking metoclopramide, the generic form of Reglan. The generic drug manufacturers succeeded in convincing the district court to dismiss Ms. Mensing’s claims against them, but the 8th Circuit reversed. “If Mensing's injuries resulted from their failure to take steps to warn their customers sufficiently of the risks from taking their drugs, they may be held liable,” the Court of Appeals wrote. You can read the entire decision HERE.
Because Ocella is a generic drug like metoclopramide, this decision forecloses manufacturers from making the preemption argument in cases brought by women injured by Ocella. The 8th Circuit is the federal appellate court that hears appeals from federal district courts located in Arkansas, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. This means that when failure-to-warn claims arising from Ocella are filed in federal courts in these states, the manufacturers will not be able to argue that they are prohibited by federal law.
Ocella, Yasmin and YAZ are oral birth control pills that have a heightened risk of deep vein thrombosis (DVT), pulmonary embolism (PE), stroke, heart attack, gallbladder disease, and even death. If you or someone you know has suffered one or more of these side effects, please consider calling the attorneys at DeCarli Law for a free, no obligation telephone consultation. You can learn more about the dangers of YAZ, Yasmin and Ocella HERE. |
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| January 06, 2010 |
| Gadolinium-Based Contrast Agents Speed Multiple Myeloma Cell Growth |
| Posted By DeCarli Law |
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A paper presented at the recent annual convention of the American Society of Hematology reported that exposure to the gadolinium-based contrast agent Omniscan, manufactured by GE Healthcare, speeds the growth of multiple myeloma cells.
Multiple myeloma is a cancer of the white blood cells. MRIs enhanced with gadolinium-based contrast agents are frequently used to image bone marrow, where white blood cells are produced. The researchers found that multiple myeloma cell growth rates were 8-20 times greater after exposure to Ominiscan, depending on the size and frequency of Omniscan exposure.
Significantly, autopsies of eight multiple myeloma patients who had repeated exposures to Omniscan revealed “massive quantities of gadolinium accumulation in tissues” regardless of renal function. This is particularly troubling. The current understanding is that people with impaired renal function are at the greatest risk of the gadolinium ion breaking free from the contrast agent and depositing in their bodies because their kidneys are unable to remove the agent from their bodies before it begins breaking down. These findings indicate that large amounts of gadolinium can be deposited in the body even if a person’s kidneys are functioning normally.
Gadolinium is a rare earth element long known to be toxic to human tissue. Gadolinium-based contrast agents, used for medical scans such as MRI and MRA, cause Nephrogenic Systemic Fibrosis (“NSF”). NSF is a progressive, incurable disease characterized by hardening of the skin and other body tissues. Dialysis patients are most at risk of developing NSF. If you or someone you know has NSF, you may have a legal claim against the manufacturer of the gadolinium-based contrast agent that caused the disease. Contract the NSF lawyers/MRI attorneys at DeCarli Law for a free consultation. |
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