Catheter Injury Lawsuit

Millions of catheters have been recalled because the tip or shaft can break off inside a patient’s body. Catheter injury lawsuits have been filed by people who suffered heart attacks, blood clots, organ damage, or needed emergency surgery.

What You Can Do & How We Can Help

The Schmidt Firm, PLLC is currently accepting catheter induced injury cases in all 50 states. If you or somebody you know has been injured, you should contact our lawyers immediately for a free case consultation. Please use the form below to contact our Defective Medical Device Litigation Group or call toll free 24 hours a day at (866) 920-0753.

UPDATE: Penumbra Jet 7 Catheters Recalled After 200 Adverse Events, 14 Deaths Reported

After more than 200 reports of injuries and malfunctions from Penumbra Jet 7 Xtra Flex catheters, including at least 14 deaths, the FDA is warning healthcare providers to stop using the devices because they are defective. The catheters are commonly used to remove blood clots in stroke patients. Some of the injuries include blood vessel damage, severe bleeding, hemorrhage, and stroke (cerebral infarction). Click here to read more.

Class 1 Recall for Venture® Catheters

June 2017 — TFX and Vascular Solutions have issued a Class 1 recall over 4,600 Venture® Catheters because the tip can break off in a patient’s blood vessel and cause an embolism, blood clots, organ damage, or death. Click here to read more.

What is a Catheter?

Catheters are flexible tubes that are used in a wide variety of medical procedures. Most people are familiar with urinary catheters, which help remove urine from the body. Catheters can also inject fluids into the body. For example, cardiac catheterization injects dye into the heart that can be seen on X-rays. Catheters are also used to take tissue biopsies, deliver devices like angioplasty balloons and stents, and treat diseases with minimally-invasive surgery.

When a Catheter Breaks In Your Body

Catheters are designed to help doctors access organs and tissues deep inside the body — often in vital organs like the heart or brain. When the tip breaks off, major complications or deaths can occur.

At the very least, the medical procedure is likely to fail. Instead of the minimally-invasive procedure the patient was expecting, he or she may require an emergency surgery to retrieve the separated fragment.

The doctor might not even realize that the catheter broke. If it does not cause symptoms, it might remain in the patient indefinitely. Or it might be located where it is too dangerous to remove, like veins in the brain.

What is the Risk?

Broken catheters in the heart, brain, bloodstream, urinary tract, genitals, or soft tissues can cause many serious problems:

Stroke
Organ damage
Kidney failure
Intestinal damage
Urinary blockage
Block blood-flow to organs or tissues
Fragments in the bloodstream (embolization)
Organ damage
Blood clots
Catheter material in vital organs
Death

Cook Medical Beacon Tip Catheter Recall

In May 2016, Cook Medical recalled over 4.1 million Beacon-Tip Catheters because the tip could split or break off inside a patient. At least 42 injuries were reported in two smaller recalls in 2015.

Catheter Injury Lawsuit Filed in Louisiana

In September 2015, a man from Louisiana filed a catheter injury lawsuit against Covidien and Medtronic. A broken piece of a catheter was left inside his brain when it got stuck in an artery during a procedure to remove blood clots and improve circulation. The lawsuit was filed by Herman Helmer Jr. in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana — Case No. 2:15-cv-04835.

List of Catheter Recalls in 2016

Cook Medical Beacon-Tip Catheter — tip could split or break off in a patient
Stryker
Boston Scientific Fetch 2 Aspiration Catheter — shaft could break during surgery to remove blood clots
Centurion Mini-Med Single Lumen Catheter — excess material in the tip can enter the bloodstream and cause blood clots or death
Stryker Angiodynamics Soft-Vu Omni Flush Cardiac Catheter — tip can break off in the heart and cause stroke, organ damage, kidney failure, intestinal failure, and death
Vascular Solutions Twin-Pass Dual Access Catheter — excess material in the tip can break off and cause an embolism
Medtronic Pipeline Embolization, Alligator Retrieval, X-Celerator, Ultra-Flow and Marathon Micro-Catheter — coating on the catheter can peel off and enter the bloodstream

Johnson & Johnson Cordis Catheter Recall

Johnson & Johnson’s Cordis Corporation subsidiary has issued two Class I recalls for Fire Star RX and Dura Star RX coronary balloon catheters, which are inserted into the heart to open up blood vessels.

In January 2008, they were recalled because they pose a risk of “slow deflation or no deflation,” which could block the blood vessel and cause serious injury or death, according to the FDA.

Cordis Balloon Catheter Recalled Again

In June 2012, hundreds of Cordis Fire Star RX catheters were recalled again for the same problem it had in 2008 — not deflating properly. One doctor wrote that he had to “use force to withdraw the balloon from the patient” after it failed to deflate. The FDA received at least 8 complaints, but no reports of injuries or deaths, according to MassDevice.

Wrongful Death Lawsuit Filed After Catheter Left In for 7 Years

The lawsuit was filed by the husband of a 60 year-old woman from Texas who died when a broken catheter was left in her body for 7 years. The 8-inch fragment broke off after a procedure in 2007, but was never removed — until she suffered a massive heart attack.

Do I have a Catheter Injury Lawsuit?

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