Patients undergoing heart surgery are naturally very anxious about the procedure. Thoughts of what could go wrong while surgeons are repairing the organ often crop up, and even for those who don’t entertain the same worries, they are still there.

However, most patients don’t think twice about other rare or virtually unheard of complications that can occur. For patients who were diagnosed with heater cooler infections after a certain medical device was used in their surgery (and for those warned about the risk), this came as a surprise.

Heater Cooler Infections: How? When? Why?

A number of hospitals across the country have notified patients of the potential for developing heater cooler infections after their heart surgery. The medical device in question is known as the Stockert 3T heater cooler, and it is used to keep the patient’s organs and circulating blood at a certain temperature in order to improve surgical outcomes and reduce bleeding risks.

The Stockert 3T heater cooler is manufactured by a company called LivaNova, and an investigation revealed that manufacturing procedures at the company’s facility were responsible for the heater cooler infections. The bacteria were found in the water of the device. As the heated and cooled water becomes aerosolized through the device events, it can become airborne and can deposit into the patient’s surgery site.

The heater cooler infections are caused by a slow-growing bacteria known as non-tuberculosis Mycobacterium abscessus. This bacteria is so rare that physicians do not typically even consider it as a cause of infection unless they have specific reason to believe that a patient has been exposed to it.

Patients may not develop symptoms of the mycobacterium heater cooler infections until months or years after their exposure. According to the CDC website addressing heater cooler infections, this bacteria can cause symptoms such as “night sweats, muscle aches, weight loss, fatigue, or unexplained fever.” While these symptoms are relatively nonspecific, if they progress and the infection becomes out-of-control, the heater cooler infections can actually be fatal.

“CDC estimates that in hospitals where at least one infection has been identified, the risk of a patient getting infection from the bacteria was between about one and one in 1,000,” the government agency website states. The CDC has asked hospitals to send patients who are at risk for contracting heater cooler infections the letter informing them of the possibility of developing health issues related to mycobacterium abcessus.

Hospitals were advised to notify patients who had open-chest heart surgery at hospitals where the Stockert 3T heater coolers were used since January 2012, or at an appropriate date if the medical device was not in use until after that date.

Taking Legal Action over Heater Cooler Infections

Several lawsuits have already been filed against the makers of the Stockert 3T after patients developed heater cooler infections. In at least one of these lawsuits, the plaintiff claimed that her husband died as a result of the infection.

If you or a loved one has developed heater cooler infection, an experienced attorney can review your case at no charge and can help you decide if filing a heater cooler infections lawsuit is right for you.