Piece of da Vinci Surgical Robot Instrument Breaks off Inside Woman During Hysterectomy; It’s Found Following Months of Suffering, Parker Waichman LLP Notes
New York, New York (PRWEB) July 23, 2013 -- Parker Waichman LLP, a national law firm dedicated to protecting the rights of victims injured by defective medical devices, notes that a Southeast Portland woman suffered months of intense pain following her da Vinci-assisted hysterectomy, according to a July 22 KATU News report. After the procedure, last September, the woman, Heidi Carlson, “knew something wasn't right, but she couldn't convince doctors of that,” KATU News reported. After months of suffering without knowing the cause of her plight, a CT scan finally solved the mystery: Carlson’s pain had been brought on by a piece of one of the da Vinci robot's instruments, which had broken off inside her during surgery. Carlson said she would have considered surgical options other than the da Vinci robotic system, only her doctors never mentioned alternate methods, according to KATU News.
This news breaks right after the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) sent a warning letter on July 17 to Intuitive Surgical after April and May inspections by the agency found deficiencies, including the company’s failure to adequately report device corrections and patient adverse events, according to a July 19 Bloomberg report. The da Vinci surgical robot’s safety and cost effectiveness have also fallen under scrutiny, Bloomberg added, noting in the same report that, in February, U.S. regulators had started surveying surgeons about the robots on the heels of a rise in adverse event reports that included as many as 70 deaths since 2009.
The Bloomberg report also noted that Intuitive’s surgical robotic system, used in more than 1,300 hospitals, is the company’s flagship product and has been the subject of negligence lawsuits alleging that patients were injured during surgeries with the device. Cancer surgery, hysterectomies and gall bladder removals are among the main procedures performed with the assistance of the surgical robot, which cost about $1.5 million each, the report added.
Parker Waichman LLP continues to offer free legal consultations to alleged victims of da Vinci surgical robot injuries. If you or a loved one experienced surgical burns, perforated or torn organs, torn blood vessels or other injuries that could be associated with the da Vinci surgical robot, please contact their office by visiting the firm's da Vinci Surgical Robot Lawsuit page at yourlawyer.com. Free case evaluations are also available by calling 1 800 LAW INFO (1-800-529-4636).
Contact:
Parker Waichman LLP
Gary Falkowitz, Managing Attorney
(800) LAW-INFO
(800) 529-4636
http://www.yourlawyer.com
Gary Falkowitz, Parker Waichman LLP, http://www.yourlawyer.com, 1-800-529-4636, [email protected]
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