An ever-growing number of patients are coming forward, alleging that they have suffered from serious infections because of a contaminated heart surgery device. Plaintiffs allege that these infections are serious, and can even be life-threatening.

A growing number of heart surgery patients are reporting serious infections, allegedly due to contaminated heart surgery devices used during surgery. These infections can be serious and even life-threatening.

Contaminated Heart Surgery Devices

What are the heart surgery devices involved in these lawsuits? They’re commonly known as heater-cooler devices, and they’re manufactured by a number of companies. Heater-cooler devices are often used during heart surgeries, and are meant to regulate a patient’s blood and organ temperature. This warms and cools the blood as needed.

After undergoing heart surgeries, many patients have suffered from serious infections. They claim this is due to a contaminated heart surgery device used during their operation. While this is concerning in and of itself, it’s not just patients that are worried about the dangerous effects of contaminated heart surgery devices.

Indeed, the Center for Disease Control (CDC) has released a warning to consumers about the dangers associated with these devices. The warning notes that during the manufacturing process, some devices may have become contaminated. The CDC has warned that patients undergoing surgery with a contaminated heart surgery device may be at risk of developing serious infections, including nontuberculous mycobacterium (NTM).

The CDC has also said that the “overall risk of [mycobacterium] infection is low relative to other complications following surgery,” affecting between one in 100 and one in 1,000 patients. While the risk of developing an NTM infection from a contaminated heart surgery device is relatively slim, when it does occur, it may quickly become fatal.

Risk of Infection from a Contaminated Heart Surgery Device

Patients who have undergone surgery using a contaminated heart surgery device may be at risk of an NTM infection.

A nontuberculous mycobacterium (NTM) infection comes with several distinct symptoms. These symptoms include the following:

• Night sweats
• Aching muscles
• Joint pain
• Weight loss
• Fatigue
• Fever

Symptoms of an NTM infection may not appear immediately after the use of a contaminated heart surgery device. Instead, these symptoms may actually remain dormant for quite some time, even months after surgery and the initial infection to surface. This time can prevent patients from connecting the dots between the use of a contaminated heart surgery device and subsequent infection, leading to a delayed diagnosis of months or, in some cases, even years.

Filing a Contaminated Heart Surgery Device Lawsuit

If you or someone you love has suffered from an NTM infection after undergoing heart surgery with the use of a heart surgery device and believe that a contaminated heart surgery device may have been the cause, you may be able to file a surgical infection lawsuit. Filing a claim cannot take away the physical and emotional effects of such a serious infection, but it can help to compensate for the financial costs inevitably incurred by medical expenses and lost wages.