Personal Injury

May 2, 2010

Car Accident Tips

Car accidents happen. In fact, on average, it is estimated that an American citizen is in an auto accident six times during his or her lifetime. There were 6.4 million automobile accidents in the U.S. during 2005, the latest statistic available. However, the National Highway Transportation Safety Board’s early estimate is that 34,000 people were killed in motor vehicle accidents in 2009. Since there is a likely chance that you will be involved in a car accident in your lifetime, we’ve listed some tips for you know about car accidents.

1) Remain at the scene of the car accident. Whether there is injury or property damage or not, it is important to stay at the scene until the police give you permission to go. A person who leaves an accident scene prematurely can be cited and even charged criminally. It is better to wait and take the extra time to give an incident report to the police than to later find yourself in deep trouble.

2) At the car accident scene, do not move or administer first aid to anyone who is injured. You set yourself up for greater liability if something goes wrong and you are held responsible. Turn your car emergency flashers on and call 911, letting the trained first-responders handle the rest.

April 18, 2010

Recall of Roman Shades Due to Strangulation Scare

by Burton A. Padove

Roman Shades have been recalled by several companies over recent months following reports of strangulation in children the used the blind chords. Most recently, Ethan Allen joined the recall to include over 150,000 Roman Blinds. There were no reports of injury. However, all people using the Roman blinds should immediately take them down, store them in a safe place, return to the manufacturer or discard them. This recall affects all models and styles of Roman blinds.

Strangulation Risk

There are several ways that children can be strangled by Roman blinds. Children may place their neck between the inner cord and fabric when trying to look out the window or while playing near the blinds. Children may pull the cord out and wrap it around their neck. There is also a looped cord in which a child’s neck may get caught. Strangulation may involve a struggle which has the potential to tighten more around the neck. The end result may produce the inability to breathe, low blood pressure, chest pain, shock, stroke and death.

April 16, 2010

Construction Accidents: Know the Hazards

by Burton A. Padove

Construction accidents can be some of the most devastating types of accidents. Workers that are injured on the job may be eligible for worker’s compensation benefits. However, benefits offered through worker’s compensation may not equate to compensation for the total damages and life changing experiences that are incurred because of work accidents. Construction workers undoubtedly work in a high risk environment. Whether working on a scaffold or working with hazardous materials, the risk of injury is high for construction workers. For this reason, it is important to help prevent construction accidents as much as possible.

NIOSH has recently developed a set of precautions that construction workers can take to reduce the risk of serious injury or death, including:

Substances that are produced, used or result from job related tasks may pose a risk for injury or death.

April 10, 2010

Dialysis System Recall: Baxter Healthcare Faced with Class I Recall

by Burton A. Padove

Dialysis Systems by Baxter called HomeChoice and HomeChoice PRO are under a medical device recall following reports from physicians that people have experienced serious injury and one known death because of a defect in the product. The specific defect is unknown at this time. What is known is that the Automated PD system which is programmed to repeatedly deliver and remove dialysis solution may produce increased Intraperitoneal Volume (IIPV). Intraperitoneal Volume (IIPV) is described as overfilling of the abdominal cavity.

Intraperitoneal Volume (IIPV) is known to cause serious breathing difficulty, hernias of the abdomen or diaphragm, pulmonary dysfunction, hypertension, hydrothorax, pericardial effusion and peritonitis. Dialysis patients that are children or are seriously ill are at an increased risk of injury from the affected models of Baxter’s Dialysis System.

Some physicians may still be using Baxter’s HomeChoice and HomeChoice PRO. If they are still using Baxter’s Dialysis Systems, they are being advised by the FDA to inform dialysis patients about the risk associated with HomeChoice and HomeChoice PRO.

April 3, 2010

Broken Baseball Bat, Injury and the Law

by Burton A. Padove

Broken baseball bats have been an area of concern for the baseball community in recent years. Over 1500 baseball bats have been broken in one season for the Major Baseball League. The Minor Baseball League has banned the use of light weight maple bats that tend to fracture when used by baseball players. Yet, maple bats are not the only type of bats that pose a risk of injury. There are heavy hitting hickory wood bats, flaking ash wood bats, and high performance aluminum bats that may cause injury. In fact, it is not only the pitchers, umpires and infielders that are at risk of injury from a broken bat, fans watching baseball games are also at risk of injury.

Baseball bat injury risks are easy to understand. Baseball bats may produce a 2500 pound force at a rate of over 100 milers per hour, translating into nearly 4/10’s of a second reaction time. The speed of the bat also plays a role in the risk of injury. The speed at which a ball can travel is approximately 90 miles per hour for a wooden bat and roughly 105 miles per hour for an aluminum bat.

Baseball Bat Risks

March 28, 2010

Bike Injury and the Law

by Burton A. Padove

Bikes accounted for 43,000 injuries and nearly 100 deaths in 2007, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. At the onset, you may think that a bike injury is the cause of a swift reactive turn in response to a vehicle or some other obstruction. However, bikers maybe at risk of injury because of their bike helmet that can turn into a weapon or the bike mechanisms may malfunction.

Bike risks relate to both children and adults. Twelve thousand children and twenty six thousand people between the ages of 16 and 54 were injured on bikes in 2007. One of the problems associated with the risk of a bike injury is that people may not be aware of such risks. Bike helmet companies tout the benefits of strong lightweight fiberglass or carbon fiber shells, UV protection, ventilation systems, and antibacterial fabric, but the risk of injury from a hard hit may not be disclosed. Bicycle companies offer heavy duty light weight frames, top end rims and axles, street and dirt worthy tires as well as cranks and rotors for power, speed and high performance. Yet, the risks such as the bicycle’s quick release mechanism inadvertently discharging, should support every biker being more aware of the risks associated with a bicycle.

Laws About Bicycles and Bike Helmets

March 16, 2010

Food Borne Illness Risk Uncovered at Meyer Food Service Plant

by Burton A. Padove

Food borne illnesses can be traced to manufacturing plants that do not meet regulations for safety. Red flags went up for the risk of a food borne illness at Meyer’s Seafood Processing Facility recently. In October of 2009, inspectors uncovered violations of the seafood Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) regulation, Title 21, Code of Federal Regulations, Part 123 (21 CFR 123).

The Wisconsin based seafood plant has received a warning letter because of several failures to meet regulations including:

• Meyer’s vacuum-packed cold-smoked salmon, bonito, mahi-mahi, tuna, wahoo, mackerel, jobfish, jack or crevalle, trevally, escolar, clams, cockles, mussels, oysters, scallops, and air packed, hot-smoked salmon have been deemed adulterated because they have been prepared, packed, or held in unsanitary conditions and rendered injurious to health.

March 10, 2010

Closed IV Catheter Systems Recall

by Burton A. Padove

Millions of Becton, Dickinson and Company catheter systems are involved in a recall because of a defect in the product that may result in injury or death to a user. The direct flaw of the catheter system involves the risk of an air embolism and leakage of blood or therapeutic fluids. These risks pose an additional risk of serious injury or death.

Becton Dickson received reports that air was entering through the septum disk. Catheter system failures were reported on units that were distributed from November 2009 to November 2009.

Catheters are used in hospitals to treat a variety of medical conditions, including, but not limited to:

March 8, 2010

Cardiac Defibrillator Recall

by Burton A. Padove

Cardiac defibrillators can be faulty at times and such is the case with Cardiac Science’s automated external defibrillator. The manufacturer of the medical device has discovered a flaw in the design of the defibrillator which can lead to the inability to resuscitate an individual in need. Over 12,000 of the defibrillators have been recalled due to the defect in design. People using the defibrillator may feel protected from harm because they are using the medical device, but this is a false impression in light of the defect. The defective models include:

Powerheart 9300A, 9300E, 9300P, 9390A, 9390E
CardioVive 92532

March 5, 2010

Toyota Recall: Owners Not Injured and Those That Are May Have Entitlements

by Burton A. Padove

Toyota owners that have not been injured and those that have may be entitled to financial compensation because of the defects associated with Toyota cars. Toyota recalls have totaled approximately 8 million autos over the past several months, including several models:

2009-2010 RAV4 Crossover
2009-2010 Corolla