Boston Personal Injury Lawyer - Product Liability

Contaminated Dairy May Have Caused 3 Deaths

Jenny Albano — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 19:36:55 GMT

Health officials claim that the milk from Whittier Farms dairy in Shrewsbury has caused the death of 3 elderly men and caused one women to miscarriage since last June because the milk was contaminated with listeria.

Whittier Farms is popular because they still deliver milk to your door in glass bottles and the milk does not contain added hormones.

All were infected with listeria, which is extremely rare in pasteurized milk. It is more often found in raw foods, such as uncooked meat and vegetables, and processed foods such as soft cheeses and cold cuts. The outbreak is believed to be only the third time listeria has ever been linked to pasteurized milk in the United States. Listeria bacteria are often present in manure and are commonly found in soil and water. Pasteurization is supposed to kill listeria.

Tests that were completed at the plant do not show anything wrong with the pasteurization process and now health investigators are testing the cooling and bottling machinery for the source of the problem. So far the investigators have taken around 70 samples from all over the plant.

The dairy, which also has a 500-acre farm in Sutton, has stopped all operations until the source of the bacteria is found and the problem is rectified. The Whittier family has sent letters to its customers saying they are "extremely concerned about the situation" and are cooperating fully with authorities.

Symptoms of listeria include fever, nausea and diarrhea. Ingesting this kind of bacteria can cause serious illness or death in pregnant women, newborns, the elderly and patients who have compromised immune systems.

DNA testing on the four patients with listeria from Whittier Farms showed they all carried the same strain of listeria, which suggests that the bacteria had a common source. Once this was found, the families of the deceased were interviewed to help pinpoint the source.

At about the same time, a health worker at the hospital where an 88-year-old man was diagnosed with listeriosis learned that the man had had unpasteurized cider and coffee-flavored pasteurized milk. When both drinks were tested, only the pasteurized milk -- from Whittier Farms -- came back positive. Officials then found listeria in an unopened container at the dairy's store in Shrewsbury.

For more information on this subject, please refer to our section on Defective and Dangerous Products.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jenny Albano

The Bon-Ton Department Stores Inc. is Recalling Hooded Jackets Due to Strangulation Hazard from Drawstrings

Jenny Albano — Wed, 28 Nov 2007 02:14:10 GMT

The Bon-Ton Department Stores Inc., in conjunction with the CPSC, is recalling about 3,240 Children's fleece hooded zip-up jackets with neck drawstrings because the drawstring could pose a strangulation hazard to children.

In February 1996, CPSC issued guidelines to help prevent children from strangling or getting entangled on the neck and waist by drawstrings in upper garments, such as jackets and sweatshirts.

The recalled hoodies are for boys from ages 8-20 and are under the brand-name "Burnside". The jackets come in sizes from small through x-large and have multiple designs of the front. The recalled product will have the "RN # 39209" labeled on the tag of the jacket.
tag.

The recalled items were available at Bon-Ton, Bergner's, Boston Store, Carson Pirie Scott, Elder-Beerman, Herberger's and Younkers retail stores across the U.S. and Parisian stores in the Detroit from August 2007 to October 2007. So far there have been no reported injuries from the drawstrings.

For more information on this subject, please refer to our section on Defective and Dangerous Products.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jenny Albano

Vintage Chocolates Inc. Recalls Soy Milk Chocolate Bars

Jenny Albano — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 14:11:07 GMT

Vintage Chocolates Inc., in conjunction with the FDA, is recalling 4,455 soy milk chocolate bars because they may contain undeclared traces of milk. Anyone that is allergic or sensitive to milk and consumes this product could run the risk of serious or life-threatening allergic reactions.

The bar is presented in a beige cardboard package of 3.5 oz, depicting tree with a green band on top stating "43% Soy milk or 38% Soy milk". On the back of the package one would find; the following information: UPC: 797148000398.

One injury was reported to the company which sparked an analysis of the formulation, and product analysis to determine the origin of the problem. The company has concluded from the investigation that the traces of milk in the product came from cross contamination issue during processing.

The one reported injury was from a child who received rashes after eating the soy chocolate bar. The product was distributed in 15 states and was available in retail stores as well as on the company's website: echocolates.com

For more information on this subject, please refer to our section on Defective and Dangerous Products.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Jenny Albano

FDA Announces Safety Review of FosaMax, Boniva Class of Drugs

Courtney Mills — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 14:06:34 GMT

The FDA released an 'early communication' to the public of an ongoing safety review regarding the drug class bisphosphonates due to potential atrial fibrillation with the use of this class of drug. The agency has requested that further data be obtained in order to assay the merits of the tendency.

Bisphosphonates are a class of drug prescribed by physicians to treat osteoporosis. These medications are sold on the market under the brand names Fosamax, Actonel, Reclast, and Boniva, and they retard the rate of bone thinning in adult men and women. These drugs also reduce the likelihood of suffering from broken bones.

The FDA made this announcement after a study in the New England Journal of Medicine this spring revealed more cases of serious atrial fibrillation associated with older female patients treated with Fosamax or Reclast than those treated with a placebo.

For more information on this subject, please refer to the section on Drugs, Medical Devices, and Implants.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Courtney Mills

E. Coli Hamburgers Make 21 Sick in 8 States

Courtney Mills — Fri, 28 Sep 2007 14:42:56 GMT

The CDC has announced that at least twenty-one people in eight states are on record as having fallen ill in the latest E. coli scare after having consumed hamburger meat tainted with E. coli bacteria.

According to reports, CDC spokeswoman Lola Russell said three cases - two in New York and one in Florida - are confirmed as being linked to the ground beef, with the other 18 cases possibly linked to the recall. The boxes recalled carry the number "Est. 9748" inside the USDA mark of inspection and were produced on June 22, July 12 or July 23.

The purveyor of the tainted product is New Jersey-based Topps Meat Company, the largest supplier of frozen patties in the United States. The company recalled this week over 330,000 lbs of frozen beef patties as a result of the E. coli outbreak.

The line of products recalled by Topps Meat Company includes 10-lb boxes of Butchers Best All-Beef patties, Kohler Foods burgers, 10-lb boxes of Sand Castle Fine Meat, 2-lb boxes of Topps 100% Ground Beef Hamburgers, and 3-lb boxes of Topps 100% Ground Beef Hamburgers. The boxes recalled carry the number "Est. 9748" inside the USDA mark of inspection and were produced on June 22, July 12 or July 23.

Topps meat products are distributed in Wal-Mart stores across the country.

For more information on this subject, please refer to the section on Defective and Dangerous Products.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Courtney Mills

Tainted Beef Sold in Shaw's Supermarkets Recalled

Ken Margolin — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 13:15:00 GMT

Ground beef patties sold under the Shaw's supermarket label, were recalled yesterday. According to Fairbank Farms, the company that sells the beef to Shaws, packages with the tainted beef could have been purchased in New England between 7 a.m. - 11 a.m., on Wednesday, September 5, 2007. The 85% lean beef was sold in 1.33 pound packages with the establishment number "Est. 492. The beef was tainted with an ecoli bacteria that can cause illness ranging from stomach cramps to the rare death from kidney failure. Fairbanks Farms reports that while most of the tainted beef was located before it left the warehouse, some packages were distributed to Shaws supermarkets in each of the New England states. According to the federal Center for Disease Control and Prevention, the type of ecoli found in the recalled beef, kills more than 60 Americans each year.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Ken Margolin

Hasbro Easy Bake Oven Recall

Ken Margolin — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 16:50:00 GMT

Underscoring the continued hazards to children, created by poorly designed toys, Hasbro recalled its Easy Bake Oven. Nearly a million of the toys have been manufactured. The oven is intended for young children. It is a small plastic replica of a real oven, electrically powered, that heats up internally to as hot as 400 degrees farenheit! No surprise - children have been getting burned - and getting fingers caught, in alarming numbers. There was a recall of the toy earlier in the year, but spurred by its popularity, Hasbro offered repair kits. The kits didn't work. Since the recall Hasbro has received nearly 250 reports of caught fingers, 77 reports of burns, including second and third degree burns, and one partial amputation of a little girl's finger. Great toy. Let's see if it is put to rest for good.

For more information on this subject matter, please refer to our section on Defective and Dangerous Products.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Ken Margolin

Fire Danger in General Electric Dishwashers

Ken Margolin — Wed, 16 May 2007 17:50:00 GMT

The United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC), with the cooperation of General Electric, has issued a recall for washing machines manufactured by the company. The washing machines are sold under various brand names, including, G.E., Eterna, GE Profile, GE Monogram, Hotpoint, and Sears-Kenmore. The CPSC has received a dozen reports of fires causing property damage, emanating from the dishwashers, and nearly 200 reports of overheated wiring. To date, no injuries have been reported. Any consumer with one of the suspect brands, should call GE's recall hotline, at (877) 607-6395, or the CPSC recall hotline, at (800) 638-2772.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Ken Margolin

Magnetic Building Set Recall

Ken Margolin — Tue, 24 Apr 2007 13:25:00 GMT

Toys with small, removable parts, continue to pose hazards to children. Last month, Mega Brands, Inc., the maker of "Magnetix" building sets, recalled nearly 4 million of the toys. The recall was an expansion of an original recall of some of the sets, in March 2006. The building sets include magnets that are easily removed, and easily swallowed. To date, at least one death and more than 25 serious injuries, including aspiration injuries, to children, are known to be attributed to the Magnetix building sets. Although the company is still manufacturing and selling the toy, it has changed the design, so that the potentially lethal magnets are not so easily removed by children. The federal Consumer Product Safety Commission is behind the recall, and reports that Mega Brands, Inc. is cooperating with the Commission.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Ken Margolin

Power Window Injuries to Children

Ken Margolin — Fri, 26 Jan 2007 15:30:00 GMT

Ford Motor Company recently settled a tragic case involving death of a 21 month old girl who was strangled by a rear-seat power window that she inadvertently activated. It turns out that the on-off switch could be activated with very little pressure, that the window rose quickly, and that there was no mechanism to stop the window if it encountered pressure. There was a wrinkle in the case, as is true for almost all personal injury cases - the girl's mother had left the girl momentarily unattended with the engine running so that the air-conditioner could remain on. She had left the window open, likely thinking that was safest, as she might be able to hear her daughter. What undoubtedly caused Ford to settle was the fact that evidence would show that car makers have known about the danger of power window injuries and power window deaths, for decades. Not every hazard can be economically engineered out of every product. Nevertheless, when a product design is known to pose an unreasonable risk to children, especially when children are expected to use the product, manufacturers must be held accountable for refusing to take reasonable steps to reduce the risk.

Originally posted at InjuryBoard by Ken Margolin