Surgical Removals of Mirena IUD Increasing

A number of lawsuits have arisen due to the complications caused by the use of intrauterine contraceptive devices (IUDs).  It has been shown that with the increase in popularity of IUDs, there has been a notable rise of cases where migration of the devices leads to a need for corrective surgery for the removal of


From Conservative Court to Activist Court in One Decision

When is a conservative court not a conservative court?  When it expands tort liability, apparently: Last month, in Wyeth v. Weeks, the Alabama Supreme Court adopted an aggressive new theory of tort liability that threatens to return Alabama to a litigation era so hostile to business and industry that the state was dubbed “Tort Hell.” In Weeks,



colorado judge dismisses case against hospital; forgets to disclose that his brother is an executive there

What’s that?  I think it’s the appearance of impropriety: "I understand (the plaintiff’s attorneys) would be stunned and upset," Munch said. "I have made disclosures in cases. I certainly should have disclosed it." Rebecca Aviel, a legal ethics professor at the University of Denver, said it’s clear Munch had a responsibility to inform attorneys in


Asbestos, tobacco, and now tanning salons?

The first thing any industry faced with negative scientific evidence does is form a trade group.  And the first thing that trade group does is gin up “scientific” evidence that claims the industry is being falsely maligned.  The asbestos industry did (and does) it, and of course so did the tobacco industry.  Now, it’s the


forbes story on medical malpractice buries the lede

“Bury the lede” or “bury the lead” – it means the same thing: To put the crucial information at the end of a story.  And that’s just what Forbes did with a recent story on medical malpractice. The article checks all the right boxes that an article written by an M.D. about medical malpractice should:


Some maryland surgical centers receive little oversight

Apparently, it’s not whether something walks like a duck and talks like a duck, it’s whether it bills insurance companies like a duck: There is tremendous oversight in the operating rooms in hospitals.  But in Maryland, some other locations where surgery is done simply don’t.  Maryland’s Health Secretary, Dr. Joshua Sharfstein, acknowledges some clinics where


DePuy Engineer Explains Flaw in Internal Testing of ASR Hip

The New York Times reports on the interesting information being revealed in the first DePuy ASR hip trial: Separately, a DePuy engineer, Graham Isaac, testified on Thursday that before selling the A.S.R., the company only tested its performance on laboratory equipment at one angle of implantation. Depending on the surgical technique and a patient’s build,


Salmonella Leads To Hog Head Cheese Recalled in Louisiana, Texas

Food Safety news reported today that nearly 5,000 pounds of a pork product called “Hog Head Cheese” was recalled in Louisiana and Southeast Texas": A recent outbreak of Salmonella Uganda in Louisiana has prompted a Texas company to recall a ready-to-eat (RTE) pork product. Houston’s Stallings Head Cheese Co. Inc. recalled 4,700 pounds of hog