A plaintiff who has filed a lawsuit against 3M over Bair Hugger complications wants the complaints consolidated into an multidistrict litigation (MDL).

Plaintiff William L. is asking the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPML) to transfer the 14 known Bair Hugger lawsuits to a federal court in Minnesota so that pretrial procedures may be overseen by U.S. District Judge Donovan Frank.

These claims arise out of an alleged flaw in the design of the Bair Hugger warming system that may increase the risk of deep joint infection for patients undergoing orthopedic procedures such as knee replacement surgery or hip replacement surgery.

About the Bair Hugger Warming System

The Bair Hugger is a device used during surgery to keep the patient warm. It consists of a blanket attached to a unit that warms air and circulates it near the patient’s body. Keeping a surgical patient warm provides a few different benefits such as reducing the risk of excessive bleeding and shortening recovery times.

The Bair Hugger was developed by Arizant Healthcare, which was subsequently purchased by 3M. Both Arizant and 3M are both named defendants in these Bair Hugger lawsuits.

Bair Hugger Allegations

William alleges the Bair Hugger circulates air from the floor of the operating room up to the surgical site on the patient’s body, disrupting the downward air flow of the operating room. He says this action picks up pathogens near the floor and delivers them to the open surgical site.

When that occurs during hip or knee replacement surgery, it can increase the risk of peri-prosthetic joint infections, potentially requiring surgical debridement, replacement of the prosthetic, and in some cases amputation, he claims.

He cites a few studies that support his argument that the Bair Hugger systems increases the risk of infection. A study published in 2009 found Bair Hugger disperses large numbers of particles into the sterile field.

A 2011 study, “Forced-air warming blowers: An evaluation of filtration adequacy and airborne contamination emissions in the operating room,” published in the American Journal of Infection Control, found 58% of the forced-air warmers studied (including the Bair Hugger) produced and emitted airborne contaminants.

Although the study did not determine whether the contaminants were viable, it observed that high levels of contamination are not necessary to cause an infection when dealing with a hip or knee replacement.

To remove pathogens from the air it circulates, the Bair Hugger uses a filtration system that the manufacturers previously said is HEPA-compliant. However, William argues that filtration system currently does not even approach HEPA standards.

William says that although there are only fourteen Bair Hugger lawsuits now pending in the federal court system, there’s reason to expect that number to increase by tens of thousands. He estimates there are around 50,000 Bair Hugger units being used in the U.S., and tens of thousands of patients each month undergo surgery using a Bair Hugger.

Bair Hugger Lawsuits

The consolidation William is asking for would combine the fourteen Bair Hugger lawsuits into a single multidistrict litigation, or MDL. The federal court system sometimes uses the MDL procedure when many cases pending at roughly the same time share common issues – such as in large scale product liability claims.

In those cases, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation may transfer all relevant claims to a single court for coordinated pretrial procedures, then remit them to their home courts for trial.

If the JPML grants William’s request for multidistrict litigation, the Bair Hugger MDL would be potentially assigned to the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota under MDL No. 2666.