Medical companies 3M and subsidiary Arizant Healthcare are being hit with another Bair Hugger lawsuit, from a man who incurred a hospital infection after his knee surgery.

The claimant states that in direct result of using the forced warming blanket, bacterial cells were blown directly onto the surgical site and caused an infectious development.

California plaintiff Marlo C. had undergone knee replacement surgery on April 11, 2014, in which a Bair Hugger warming blanket was used.

Like most patients using the Bair Hugger, the blanket was placed over his body to help regulate his body temperature while under anesthetic.

The device’s allegedly defective design had caused numerous contaminants to be blown onto the surgical site during Marlo’s knee surgery, resulting in a Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infection.

The infection caused the need for two corrective surgeries to remove the knee implant, and to clean the infected area.

These surgeries occurred a year from the initial knee surgery, with Marlo reportedly still suffering from limited mobility, pain, and burning sensations that all make basic movements challenging.

Due to the bacterial infections allegedly brought forward by the Bair Hugger, Marlo will continue to suffer debilitating complications.

There are currently over 50,000 Bair Hugger devices used in hospitals throughout the United States, with most of them unaware of the potential infections this device can introduce.

The Bair Hugger is a portable heating blanket that is connected to a flexible, which is used to blow hot air onto the patients during surgery.

Ideally the collected hot air would accumulate under the warning blanket, allowing for a more conducive surgical experience.

Unfortunately it has been recently discovered that a considerable percentage of the air collected may contain dangerous bacteria, which are blown directly onto the surgical site.

Overview of Bair Hugger Allegations

3M and its subsidiary, Arizant Healthcare, allegedly knew about this problem for years and had even sent a warning letter to the FDA in 1997.

The letter stated that the air blown onto the patients from the Bair Hugger, could result in “airborne contamination”. Additionally, the medical companies had allegedly reduced the air filtration efficiency of the Bair Hugger at some point between 2002 and 2009.

Despite the dangers of these complications, 3M has allegedly been aggressively marketing the Bair Hugger without adequately describing its risks.

In a communication letter sent to the FDA in 2000, the company had falsely stated that the Bair Hugger had met High Efficient Particulate Air (HEPA) standards.

Under HEPA and air filter device must be able to remove at least 99.97% of contaminants in the air, but it has recently been discovered that the Bair Hugger only filters 65%.

Marlo insists that he never would have consented to use of the Bair Hugger during surgery, if he had known the risks associated with it.

The Bair Hugger Lawsuit is Case No. 5:15-cv-02467-JGB-SP, in the U.S. District Court of Central California.