19 June

Sticky

Study: Testosterone Supplements Cause Plaque Buildup

A new study adds to the growing body of evidence connecting testosterone supplements and heart disease. The National Institutes of Health studied 170 men with an average age slightly above 70, which is the target age group for many testosterone supplements. Study participants who used AndroGel for more than twelve months had a 20 percent higher rate of arteriosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries due to plaque. Such participants also had higher rates of heart disease in general. Despite the known side effects, ads for testosterone supplements routinely tout benefits for older men, almost equating low-t therapy with the fountain of...

17 April

0 Comments

Sticky

The Changing Face Of Kentucky Nursing Homes

Posted by Gary Logsdon Law

in Medical Malpractice

As society struggles to find innovative ways to deal with an aging population, the future of elder care may be a process as opposed to a place. However, the potential for elder abuse will be just as high.

Every day, roughly 10,000 Americans turn 65. 70 percent of these individuals will require living assistance, and a large number of these people will stay in a nursing home for at least five years. To deal with the exploding elder care issue, some advocates support a continuum of care idea. According to the Department of Health and Human Services, a continuum of care is “less a facility and more a concept” that includes hospice care, full-fledged nursing homes, assisted living facilities, rehabilitation clinics, and counselling/social support services. Another new idea, the Village to Village movement, began in Boston in the early 2000s. This movemenr is dedicated to ending lonliness among older people by keeping these individuals plugged into their communities. Adult day care centers are a significant component.

12 April

0 Comments

Sticky

As Seen On TV: Media Ads Increase Supplement Sales

Posted by Gary Logsdon Law

in Defective Drugs

Even though there may be more evidence to support serious side effects than product efficacy, the “low-T” ads prominently featured on television have caused a surge in testosterone supplement sales, according to a recent study.

Most of the ads ran in the southeast and Great Lakes region, where some men saw up to fourteen commercials a month, or 200 such commercials during the study period. The study concluded that every commercial triggered an increase in testosterone testing, new prescriptions, and especially in prescriptions without testing. Dr. Richard Kravitz, who sits on the faculty at the University of California-Davis, said that this latest testosterone study underscored the sometimes harmful effects of patient advertising.

03 April

0 Comments

Sticky

More Victims Filing Risperdal Lawsuits

Posted by Gary Logsdon Law

in Defective Drugs

Janssen Pharmaceuticals, a division of Johnson & Johnson, is facing 40 percent more Risperdal serious side effect lawsuits today than it did just a year ago.

The lead attorneys in Philadelphia have added more than 500 new suits to the docket since the beginning of 2017. J&J lawyers are now even more aggressive in the wake of a $70 million verdict in March 2017; before then, the company had settled many of these actions for as little as $2,000 a case. One source says that J&J is refusing to settle and doing “whatever it takes” to win cases, such as bringing a new stable of expert witnesses to court. On top of the Risperdal lawsuits, the company is dealing with multiple verdicts regarding the link between talcum powder and ovarian cancer, in addition to an ongoing parade of defective hip implant cases. There are more claims on the horizon as well, as the first Xarelto trial is scheduled to begin in April 2017; these victims claim that the blood thinner causes uncrontrolled bleeding.

01 March

0 Comments

Sticky

Caregivers Sentenced In Elder Abuse Cases

Posted by Gary Logsdon Law

in Medical Malpractice

Two individuals will spend the next two years in probation as the result of two separate nursing home abuses cases at two different Owensboro care facilities.

15 February

0 Comments

Sticky

Gynecomastia Lawsuit Settles On Courthouse Steps

Posted by Gary Logsdon Law

in Defective Drugs

Janssen Pharmaceuticals, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, paid a victim an undisclosed sum of money to avoid trial in a Risperdal lawsuit.

In December 2016, Judge Arnold L. New ruled that a jury could hear only two of the victim’s thirteen claims. Less than a month later, and three days before jury selection was to begin, the parties announced a settlement. According to court documents, doctors prescribed Risperdal to the victim off-label in 2002 while he was still a minor; at that time, the Food and Drug Administration had only approved the drug for use in adults with certain mental health conditions. After taking Risperdal for ten years, the young man developed gynecomastia (male breast enlargement), a condition that nearly always requires aggressive surgery to correct.

01 February

0 Comments

Sticky

Ky. Caregiver Faces Serious Abuse Charges

Posted by Gary Logsdon Law

in Medical Malpractice

21-year-old Billy Spicer faces multiple criminal charges stemming from nursing home abuse allegations in a Clark County group home.

According to Attorney General Andy Beshear, Mr. Spicer was an overnight caregiver at a facility housing intellectually or developmentally disabled adults. At one point, Mr. Spicer either sealed a resident’s room with duct tape to keep the resident from leaving, or he failed to remove such restraint. A grand jury indicted the man on three counts, and if convicted of all three nursing home abuse charges, Mr. Spicer faces a maximum 15 years in prison. He is currently free after posing a $10,000 bond.

“One of the core missions of my office is to protect Kentucky’s most vulnerable citizens from abuse and exploitation – and to prosecute offenders to the fullest extent of the law,” Mr. Beshear vowed.

11 January

0 Comments

Sticky

Ky. Lawmakers Ponder Lawsuit Limits

Posted by Gary Logsdon Law

in Auto Accidents, Medical Malpractice

State Senator Ralph Alvarado, R-Winchester, wants medical negligence victims to bring their claims before an industry-dominated review board before they can bring them to court.

His Senate Bill 4 is very much like previous measures which have enjoyed broad support in the GOP-controlled Senate but failed to win over House Democrats. Now, with Republican majorities in both houses, the medical negligence lawsuit limits may become a reality, especially since a Senate panel quickly and overwhelmingly approved Senate Bill 4. Sen. Alvarado, who is also a doctor, spoke up for the proposal during committee hearings, claiming that the number of lawsuits is driving up medical care costs. Doctors “order tests they never would have before just to cover themselves, and the cost of medical care is going up as a result,” he added. If the bill passes, a panel of three medical providers and one non-voting medical negligence lawyer must determine that a claim is meritorious before the victim can obtain damages in court.

A number of Democrats, including Lexington Sen. Reginald Thomas, vehemently oppose Senate Bill 4. “[E]very citizen in this commonwealth should have access to the courthouse door,” he insisted.

27 October

0 Comments

Sticky

Four Things You Should Know About IVC Filters

Posted by Gary Logsdon Law

in Defective Medical Devices

Each year over 250,000 IVC filters are implanted into patients at risk for blood clots. Although most patients have no side effects, there are some serious complications with IVC filters. Fact #1: The longer the IVC filter stays in place, the higher the risk of injury. Once the blood clot has passed the IVC filter should be removed. The FDA states the device should stay in anywhere form 29 – 54 days from insertion date for best results. Fact #2: IVC filters have been connected to 27 deaths and counting. A recent NBC News special revealed at last 27 deaths have been linked to...

Medical Malpractice Tag