Plaintiffs in California have brought what appears to be the first of many likely lawsuits against GE and hospitals for injuries resulting from overexposure - as much as eight (8) times the recommended dosages - to radiation during CT brain perfusion scans. The overexposure can reportedly cause hair loss, cataract problems and potentially increase the risk of cancer.
According to the hospital sued in the California case, the settings on the machine and the way it is manufactured mean there's a very good chance similar injuries or overexposure incidents have occurred in radiology departments across the U.S.
The FDA is recommending steps to fix the problems, including making sure the default settings matched the recommended settings from the manufacturer, making sure the dose information was easily viewable by the machine's operator, changing settings to make sure the dosage information was correct before proceeding and protecting the settings so that only the manufacturer could change them.
If you or anyone you know has had a brain perfusion scan, is experiencing any side effects such as hair loss or has received notice from a hospital regarding any GE CT scanner, please contact your medical provider immediately.
The attorneys at Jones Ward PLC represent injured plaintiffs from across the country in drug cases such as Yaz, over-exposure to harmful chemicals such as Total Body Formula cases and products liability cases such as the DePuy hip replacement recall. If you would like to speak to someone about a potential case, please call the attorneys of Jones Ward PLC at 1-888-KYLAW22 (595-2922) or email jasper@jonesward.com.
