Multiple Stockert 3T lawsuits have be filed in federal district court alleging that serious infections were caused by the cardiac heater-cooler.

On Feb. 1, 2018, more than three dozen Stockert 3T lawsuits were transferred into a multidistrict litigation. This consolidation follows a failed first attempt to do so in March 2017.

The universal complaint of the Stockert 3T lawsuits is that the cardiac heater-cooler causes nontuberculous mycobacterium (NTM) infections in patients after undergoing a surgical procedure.

The cardiac heater-cooler moderates the temperature of blood while it is circulated during the bypass process. The device works by circulating water, which can become aerosolized and released into the ambient air through the exhaust vent.

Stockert 3T lawsuits argue that if the inside of the device is contaminated water, that water can be later aerosolized and can contaminate the surgical field. Through the aerosolization, contaminating bacteria that would not typically pose a threat when ingested can come into contact with exposed internal organs in the surgical field.

The bacteria in question are known as nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM), a class of naturally occurring organisms commonly found in water and soil. If the bacteria are not aerosolized, they pose little threat.

However, when the bacteria are aerosolized in an operating room and come into contact with susceptible internal organs, they can cause a serious infection. According to the American Lung Association, a NTM infection can be asymptomatic, but common symptoms include persistent cough, hemoptysis, fatigue, low grade fever, night sweats, and weight loss.

Over the past year, many hospitals have alerted their patients of possible exposure and encouraged them to watch for symptoms of a possible NTM infection. Although many hospitals have taken it upon themselves to warn their patients of the danger, such action is not required by any federal organization and no recall has been made.

Although the FDA is investigating the risks of mechanisms of cardiac heater-coolers and NTM infections, plaintiffs in Stockert 3T lawsuits argue that more action needs to be taken and that the device should be recalled.

The initial request for a multidistrict litigation attempted to reassign the Stockert 3T lawsuits to a federal judge in South Carolina. The judicial panel denied the request for coordination on the grounds that the individual lawsuits were moving at an acceptable pace and the judges could coordinate informally, as the individual lawsuits numbered less than 20.

Shortly after, in September 2017, Stockert filed to establish a multidistrict litigation. As the motion from the plaintiffs had already been denied, the action was unusual. Unlike the initial attempt to establish a multidistrict litigation, the motion included 39 individual lawsuits instead of only the 20 that were pending at the time of the initial request.

Despite the unconventional nature of the request, in February 2018, the judicial panel approved the order to consolidate the individual Stockert 3T lawsuits into a multidistrict litigation in a federal court in Pennsylvania.

With individual Stockert 3T lawsuits now consolidated into a Stockert 3T multidistrict litigation, it is the hopes of plaintiffs and their families that damages will be recovered quickly and efficiently. A Stockert 3T lawsuit could help recover damages for medical expenses, pain and suffering, wrongful death, and more.

The Stockert 3T MDL is No. 2816, In Re: Sorin 3T Heater-Cooler System Products Liability Litigation (No. II), in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.