Raizner Slania LLP has filed a Bair Hugger staph infection lawsuit on behalf of a Washington woman against 3M Company and Arizant Healthcare. The woman believes the Bair Hugger is defective in its design and manufacture.
In April 2012, the plaintiff underwent an artificial joint surgery in which the Bair Hugger warming blanket was used throughout the procedure to regulate body temperature. The Bair Hugger is composed of two parts – the first is a machine that sucks in air and heats it and the second is a blanket with holes that is draped over the blanket. The heated air gets pushed into the blanket and out of the holes, delivering warm air to the patient’s body.
However, this also allows contaminants in the operating room air to be introduced into a patient’s open surgical wound. As a result of the Bair Hugger system being used throughout the scope of her procedure, the patient developed a periprosthetic joint infection, also known as a deep joint infection. The pathogens identified were staphylococcus aureus and gram-positive cocci.
Most people know staphylococcus aureus as the common Staph infection. However, while most know about Staph infections that occur on the skin, Staph infections in artificial joints are incredibly difficult to treat. A Staph infection can cause a number of serious conditions, including sepsis and pneumonia.
In order to treat the infection caused by the Bair Hugger device, the plaintiff was forced to undergo extensive medical treatment, including multiple multi-staged revision arthroplasties, placement and removal of multiple antibiotic spacers, multiple irrigation and debridements with extensive synovectomies and polyethylene liner exchanges, and PICC line antibiotics. Additionally, the plaintiff required skilled nursing care and suffered additional complications from undergoing multiple major surgeries and using long-term antibiotics.
Not only has our client suffered physically, but also economically with cost of the additional medical treatments. Our client believes neither 3M nor Arizant ever warned her about the infection risks of the device and the companies are in breach of express warranty.
Don’t Wait To Get Help With Your Bair Hugger Staph Infection Lawsuit
If you have suffered a deep joint infection after a hip or knee joint surgery within the last five years, the experienced Bair Hugger lawyers at Raizner Slania LLP can help. There are time limitations on these types of claims, so don’t wait to call us and schedule a free consultation.
