Defects and Recalls

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is investigating incidents of severe pulmonary disease among individuals who have used e-cigarettes in a number of different states. As of this month, the state of Wisconsin has the most cases, with 16 confirmed and 15 additional under investigation. The respiratory symptoms suffered by patients as…

In 2015, a Miami woman with macular degeneration, an incurable disease leading to permanent vision loss, visited a clinic which promised the extraordinary: a treatment designed to slow down, or even stop, the progression of the disease. The treatment would use stem cells from the patient’s own belly fat. Instead of gaining her vision back,…

Most doctors and the public think that the FDA’s database on defective medical devices should be current and complete. If a product malfunctions, the reasonable expectation is that the doctor can research the device to learn what complaints have been filed and whether it is safe for future surgeries. What doctors also expect is that…

Product recalls are an unfortunately common occurrence. You’ve probably seen some lately: tainted romaine lettuce, certain model cars with defective airbags, or perhaps a child’s toy recalled for choking hazards. Typically, local or national news or authorized websites provide consumers with serial numbers to check against your product to see if it’s affected, and what…

Essure birth control went on the market in 2002, and since then the implantable permanent birth control device has been the focus of much controversy. Thousands of women, on their own or organized in support groups, have reported that the device has caused them chronic pain, internal bleeding, miscarriages, and stillbirths. This past April, the…

When medical devices that have been implanted into a human body (like a pacemaker or an IUD, for example) fail, Medicare often covers the surgery to replace them. The Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services released a report that said Medicare has paid at least $1.5 billion over a decade…

There have been a number of vehicle recalls in the last three years that warranted serious investigation: Takat’s exploding airbags, Jeep’s defective gear shifters, Volkswagen’s faulty emissions testers. Not since the Ford Pinto, however, have we seen something as dangerous or as serious as this. BMW cars are spontaneously combusting even while they are turned…

The fatal condition is not breast cancer, but a rare malignancy that develops in the immune system called anaplastic large-cell lymphoma. This non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma is a cancer that attacks the cells of the immune system and that can develop in various areas of the body. In cases linked to breast cancer, the disease develops within…

When a patient undergoes certain types of cardiothoracic surgery, they are often connected to a heater-cooler device that warms or cool patients during the procedure. These devices contain temperature-controlled water tanks that send heated or cooled water to warming or cooling blankets through a closed circuit (the water does not come into contact with the…

Tesla Motors Inc. has announced a voluntary recall of 2,700 of its Model X sport utility vehicles because of a faulty locking hinge mechanism in the third-row seats which could cause the seats to fall forward in a crash. This is the first recall for the Model X, and effects only those vehicles build before…