Boston Injury Lawyer Blog

August 5, 2010

91- Year-Old Driver Hits Three Pedestrians Attending a Newburyport Parade

A 91-year-old driver lost control of his minivan this past Sunday afternoon at a parade in Newburyport, injuring three parade goers.

Before the operator of the automobile was stopped by a large boulder on the opposite side of the road, he struck three individuals, including a husband and wife. The pair was hit while they were walking in a crosswalk at the parade.

The couple was taken to the local hospital where they received treatment for their injuries. The third bystander who was struck by the minivan refused treatment on the scene.

At the moment, investigators are inspecting the 91-year-old’s vehicle to see if there were any mechanical problems with the accelerator. The local police have charged the driver with driving to endanger and operating with defective equipment.
Continue reading

August 4, 2010

Boston, Massachusetts Personal Injury: Are Dietary Supplements Dangerous Drugs?

by Altman & Altman

Consumer Reports is saying that some dietary supplements may be causing more harm than good. Its report warns of 12 ingredients in supplements that can cause serious side effects, including liver, cardiovascular, and kidney problems. The ingredients that Consumer Reports is cautioning against are:

• Yohimbe • Lobelia
• Kava • Greater celandine • Germanium Comfrey • Country mallow • Coltsfoot • Colloidal silver • Chaparral • Bitter orange • Aconite
Consumer Reports says there are even supplements that contain pesticides, heavy metals, and prescription drugs.

According to CNN, the Food and Drug Administration says that these possible side effects are dependent upon how much of an ingredient the user takes over a certain period of time. Unfortunately, the Food and Drug Administration’s power to regulate the dietary supplement industry is limited and many supplements are sold without having to prove that they work and are safe.

A recent article on the magazine’s Web site talks about one man, John Coolidge, who started to experience joint pain, diarrhea, lung problems, hair loss, and the loss of toenails and fingernails after taking Total Body Formula, a supplement that was supposed to improve his health. Hundreds of others have stepped forward to complain about the adverse reactions they experienced while taking the supplement. Based on the FDA’s testing of the supplement following the complaints, most samples had over 200 times the amount of selenium than what was listed on the supplement’s label and almost 17 times more than the recommended intake of chromium.

Some have expressed concern that there may even be some manufacturers who may be adding pharmaceuticals into their supplements. One doctor, internist Dr. Pieter Cohen at Cambridge Health Alliance, says that some of his patients have gotten sick from taking supplements.

Our Boston products liability lawyers want to remind you that there are legal remedies available to the victims of a product that caused serious injuries, illness, or wrongful death.

Three Types of Product Defect:
• Design defects • Marketing defects • Manufacturing defects
Dangerous supplements: What you don’t know about these 12 ingredients could hurt you, Consumer Reports, 2010
Report: Dietary supplements pose health risks, CNN, August 4, 2010

Related Web Resources:
12 supplements you should avoid, Consumer Reports
Selected Examples of Deceptive or Dangerous Marketing for Herbal Supplements, GAO, May 26, 2010 Continue reading

July 31, 2010

Boston Medical Malpractice?: CT Brain Perfusion Scans Can Cause Radiation Overdose

by Altman & Altman

According to the New York Times, more radiation overdoses have occurred from CT brain perfusion scans than what was originally thought. More than 400 patients in the US have reportedly experienced higher radiation doses from the scans-although the FDA says that this number may be lower than the actual number of overdose cases. Last year, the Food and Drug Administration began an inquiry into why some patients that underwent the scan, which tests for stroke, experienced radiation overdose. GE Healthcare is the company that supplies the scanners.

CT brain perfusion scans are designed to deliver radiation doses equal to about 200 skull X-rays. Yet some patients reportedly received up to 13 times that radiation amount.

While the FDA has yet to release any official findings, the New York Times says that not only are the overdoses larger than what was originally determined, but some patients are experiencing much more serious side effects than hair loss, including confusion, headaches, memory loss, and a possibly higher risk of developing cancer or brain damage.

Despite these symptoms, some hospitals and doctors reportedly failed to detect that patients had experienced radiation overdose. Even after the FDA put out a national alert asking that hospitals check the tests’ radiation output, some hospitals kept overdosing patients for weeks or months.

Causes of the radiation overdoses have included improper test administration by physicians, which can be grounds for a medical malpractice case, and possible product defect issues, such as design deficiencies and failure to provide the proper training for how to use the medical devices.

After Stroke Scans, Patients Face Serious Health Risks, The New York Times, July 31, 2010
FDA Investigates Radiation Overdose At Hospitals, NPR, December 15, 2009

Related Web Resources:
FDA

Medical Malpractice, Nolo Continue reading

July 30, 2010

Suffolk County, Massachusetts Wrongful Death?: Jail Waited Too Long to Send Immigrant Detainee to the Hospital, Says Federal Report

by Altman & Altman

According to the Boston Globe, a federal immigration agency report examining the death of immigrant detainee Pedro Tavarez accuses Suffolk County Jail medical staff of waiting too long to get the 49-year-old man the proper medical help. Tavarez, who was suffering from diabetes and hypertension, was being held at the jail so he could be deported back to the Dominican Republic. He died of heart failure on October 19.
after a deadly bacterial infection ravaged his body.

The 98-page report by the ICE’s Office of Professional Responsibility claims that Tavarez did not receive the proper medical care while at the jail. Prison Health Services Inc. runs the jail infirmary.

Tavarez’s medical condition grew worse and although Boston Medical Center is closer to the jail, he was taken to Shattuck Hospital where he suffered a heart attack. Unfortunately, the Jamaica Plain hospital lacks medical emergency services, so he was transported to Faulkner Hospital. Due to the unavailability of an intensive-care bed, he was sent to Brigham and Women’s Hospital.

The report says language barriers, incomplete medical records, and staff that failed to check his vitals and get him to the right hospital immediately contributed to Tavarez not getting the proper medical care that he needed. He was initially treated for a cold but after his condition deteriorated he was admitted to an infirmary where staff was supposed to check his vitals every four hours. The report says that this did not always happen. Also, the Bureau of Prisons doctor has said that Tavarez should have been transported to a hospital sooner. Instead, he stayed at the jail infirmary for another day.

Prisons and jails owe prisoners, detainees, and suspects a duty of care to protect them from Boston police brutality and crimes committed by other inmates. The law enforcement officers must also must provide them with the proper emergency and medical care when warranted and make sure that they are fed and given enough to drink. Unfortunately, there are people who end up hurt or dead while in police custody because other parties were negligent or reckless. Injured suspects and prisoners have been known to file Boston injury lawsuits seeking compensation for the harm that they suffered.

Suffolk jail is faulted in death of detainee, Boston, July 30, 2010
Report faults care in death of Boston detainee, Boston Herald, July 30, 2010
Read the Government’s Federal Report (PDF)

Related Web Resources:
ICE’s Office of Professional Responsibility

Suffolk County Jail
Continue reading

July 26, 2010

Supreme Judicial Court’s Massachusetts Slip and Fall Ruling in Lawsuit Against Target Dissolves Distinction Between Unnatural and Natural Ice and Snow Accumulations

by Altman & Altman

The Supreme Judicial Court has thrown out a 125-year old ruling that allows there to be a distinction between snow and ice conditions caused by nature and those that accumulate artificially. In a unanimous Massachusetts slip and fall ruling, the state’s high court said that effective immediately (and retroactively to pending lawsuits) it will no longer be reasonable for a property owner to allow ice or snow to accumulate on a walkway even if either got there by natural means.

The court’s decision comes in the Massachusetts slip and fall lawsuit filed by Emanuel Papadopoulos against Target and Weiss Landscaping, the snowplow company it hired to clear snow and ice from in Liberty Tree Mall. Papadopoulos was involved in the Danvers slip and fall accident in 2002 when he slipped on snow that had turned into ice in the parking area.

While lower courts had ruled in favor of the defendants as a result of the distinction between “artificial” and “natural” ice, which holds that property owners are not violating their duty of care when they don’t remove natural accumulations of ice and snow, the Supreme Judicial Court’s ruling now paves the way for Papadopoulos’s Massachusetts slip and fall lawsuit to go back to a lower court for reconsideration.

July 23, 2010

Dementia Care: Are Boston Nursing Homes Providing the Proper Medical Treatment When They Use Antibiotics to Treat Pneumonia?

by Altman & Altman

A study of 323 Boston dementia patients from 22 assisted living facilities is calling into question whether treating residents advanced stage dementia patients who are suffering from pneumonia with antibiotics is the proper course of action. According to the study’s findings, which was published last week in the Archives of Internal Medicine, antibiotics may prolong a dementia patient’s life for about nine months. However, in the meantime, the resident may be experiencing greater pain, anxiety, and depression. Patients who were not treated with antibiotics appeared to experience greater levels of comfort than residents who were given the medication.

Pneumonia is a common illness for patients with advanced dementia because they have swallowing problems, making it easy for food to get caught in their lungs, and their immune system is likely impaired. The researchers are saying that it is important that caregivers discuss medical options with a patient’s family first rather than automatically treating his/her pneumonia with antibiotics..

Unfortunately, many nursing homes don’t consult with a patient’s family members first because they are worried they might get sued for Boston nursing home negligence. To cover their bases, they provide aggressive medical care-an option that might not be the best course of action for every resident.

Boston Nursing Home Negligence
It isn’t enough for a Massachusetts assisted living facility to provide a patient with medical and nursing care. The type of treatment provided must be the the one that’s best one for the patient’s specific needs. It is important that the resident or family members are consulted about medical decisions and informed consent is obtained.

Study questions dementia care, Boston.com, July 13, 2010
When Pneumonia Follows Severe Dementia, New York TImes, July 23, 2010

July 21, 2010

13-Year-Old Nearly Drowns in Falmouth Swimming Pool Accident at Holiday Inn

by Altman & Altman

CPR was performed on a 13-year-old boy on Monday night at the Holiday Inn on Jones Road in Falmouth. The boy nearly drowned while in the hotel pool.

Now that summer is here, the number of drowning and near drowning incidents for the year will undoubtedly go up. It is important that pool owners and supervisors, both of residential and private pools and hot tubs, make sure that the proper safety measures are in place to prevent Massachusetts drowning accidents from happening.

Just this Saturday, 2-year-old twins died in a Lynnfield drowning accident in their own pool. Veronica and Angelina Andreottola appear to have fallen into the water because a retractable cover was not completely covering the pool. Police say the toddlers may have pushed the button for the cover. Their death comes just weeks after state Representative Robert J. Nyman died from an accidental drowning in his own backyard pool.

Pool owners can be held liable for Boston personal injury or wrongful death if their negligence allowed another party to drown, nearly drown, slip and fall, or injure themselves in any other way in or around a pool or a whirlpool. Kids and adults that don’t know how to swim or are prone to certain health complications are at risk of drowning. Adequate supervision, such as lifeguards or an adult that knows how to swim and perform CPR, proper lighting, making sure the pool is clear of debris so that anyone drowning at the bottom can be easily detected, and placing rescue equipment in the pool area are just some of the steps that a property owner can take to decrease the chances that a Boston pool drowning accident will happen. Installing retractable covers, pool fences, and secured gates around the pool area can help.

CPR performed on 13-year-old near drowning victim at Falmouth hotel pool, CapeCodToday, July 20, 2010
Surveillance tape looked at in twins’ drowning, WHDH, July 20, 2010
Legislator’s autopsy determines death was accidental drowning, Boston.com, June 28, 2010

July 16, 2010

Construction Worker Injured During Massachusetts Slip and Fall Accident Through Roof

by Altman & Altman

A construction worker hurt his back and fractured his ribs on Monday during what is being described as a Shrewsbury slip and fall accident through the roof of an AutoZone that is under construction. The victim is employed by M&M Drywall of Georgia, a subcontractor for this job.

The worker fell 15 feet during the Massachusetts construction accident. According to Shrewsbury Fire Chief James M. Vuona, who is quoted on Telegram.com, the man fell after lifting a piece of plywood that was covering one of the openings of the auto parts store’s unfinished roof.

Vuona says that the Massachusetts fall accident may have happened because the surface that the worker was standing on was wet-either from dew or rain. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has opened an investigation into the Shrewsbury construction accident.

Boston, Massachusetts Construction Fall Accidents
Fall accidents from roofs, skylights, cranes, scaffolds, and other elevated heights are a common cause of serious injuries to construction workers. Construction falls can lead to traumatic brain injuries, spinal cord injuries, paralysis, coma, and even death. While an employer is supposed to pay Massachusetts workers’ compensation benefits for work injuries and deaths, disputes sometimes can arise, and this is where an experienced Boston workers’ compensation law firm can help you. There also may be third parties who should be held liable.

There are safety measures that must be in place to protect construction workers from getting hurt in a fall accident. For example, the roof of a structure under construction must be finished to a degree where it is safe enough for workers to go on it. Also, workers must be equipped with the proper protection and safety procedures must be abided by.

Man injured in job accident, News Telegram.com, July 13, 2010
Related Web Resources:
Falls, OSHA
Construction Safety, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health Continue reading

July 13, 2010

Chicopee Parents Sue Springfield Hospital for Massachusetts Personal Injury Stemming from Deceased Baby’s Organ Removal

by Altman & Altman

The parents of 7-month-old Kaylee Marie Drolet are suing Baystate Medical Center in Springfield and four doctors for Massachusetts medical malpractice. Matthew Drolet and Samantha Martino claim the defendants conducted an autopsy on Kaylee and took out her organs without their consent. The hospital disagrees, claiming that Martino gave her verbal consent that her baby’s organs could be removed.

Kaylee passed away on March 31, 2007. The infant had suffered from a very rare genetic disease called Charged syndrome.

Martino, 26, says that minutes after Kaylee was pronounced dead, a hospital doctor asked her to complete paperwork for an autopsy. She claims that she asked him to come back later but that he never did.

July 10, 2010

New Bedford Dog Attack Involving Three Pit Bulls Leaves UMass Dartmouth Student with Serious Facial Injuries

by Altman & Altman

Police are investigating a New Bedford dog attack on Friday that left a 22-year-old UMass Dartmouth student with serious injuries. WPRI reports that the man was walking close to Country and Robeson Streets in the evening when three pit bulls came out of a residence and mauled him.

According to witnesses, they jumped on the man, biting him all over his body. A number of people tried to rescue him, while drivers blasted their horns to scare the dogs away.

The student was transported to Saint Luke’s Hospital for treatment. He will likely have to undergo facial reconstructive surgery.

In other recent Massachusetts dog bite news, Lex Lizotte, a 5-year-old boy and his babysitter Karen Bruno O’Leary, 38,were injured when her bulldog attacked them in Lakeville. O’Leary reportedly held her dog, which kept biting her, until police arrived. They shot the animal nine times. Neighbors have said that dog has never a problem in the past.

Lizotte had to be flown to Boston Children’s Hospital where he underwent four hours of surgery for treatment of his injuries. O’Leary sustained serious facial and arm injuries from the Massachusetts dog attack.

Boston Dog Attacks
Dog owners can be held liable for dog bite injuries sustained by a victim. Common dog bite injuries include bite marks, open wounds, puncture wounds, rabies, nerve damage, organ damage, facial injuries, infection, and disfigurement. These injuries can be extremely painful, disfiguring, and traumatic. They may require costly surgeries to remedy and victims can be left scarred and disfigured for life. Kids and the elderly are especially susceptible to serious Massachusetts dog bite injuries. A person who is attacked by a dog may developed a fear of dogs, which can impede his/her ability to live a normal life. A dog owner does not have to be negligent in order be held liable for your Massachusetts dog bite injuries.

3 pit bulls attack man in New Bedford, WHDH, July 12, 2010
Lakeville boy, 5, survives vicious mauling, Boston Herald, June 25, 2010

Related Web Resources:
Animal and Dog Bites, Justia
Dog Bite Prevention, CDC Continue reading