September 14, 2015 — More lawsuits have been filed by people who developed antibiotic-resistant infections after undergoing hip or knee replacements in which the Bair Hugger forced-air warming blanket was used.
One recent lawsuit (PDF) was filed in federal court in Minnesota on July 25 (Case No. 0:15-cv-03142). The plaintiff, Renny Schackmann, accuses 3M Company and Arizant Healthcare of selling a defective device.
Schackmann underwent right hip revision surgery in May 2013. After developing a serious Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection, another six revision surgeries were necessary. Deep joint infections are extremely dangerous because they are hard to fight and can rapidly causes sepsis.
According to the lawsuit:
“Due to the infection, Plaintiff needed six additional surgical procedures to remove the implant and clean the infected area within less than eleven months from the revision implant surgery.”
Scheckmann was left with debilitating mobility impairments, “making the simple movement of walking a challenge,” the complaint states.
Hospital-acquired antibiotic-resistant infections are a growing problem and Scheckmann is not the first to file a lawsuit. In March 2014, a similar lawsuit was filed in Kansas on behalf of a 70 year-old man who had to have his leg amputated due to a severe MRSA infection.