Pain pumps

“I think what we’re seeing is that physicians are finally seeing the relationship between pain pumps and chondrolysis – especially since the first lawsuits were filed a couple years ago,” says Frank Woodson, shareholder with Beasley Allen Law Firm. “In addition, literature is now being published about the connection between pain pumps and chondrolysis. The more information that becomes available, the more people are learning what may be causing their shoulder problems.”
Chondrolysis is a condition in which the cartilage in the joint wears away, resulting in loss of mobility and pain. Over the past few years, surgeons began seeing several patients who have had shoulder repair surgery contract chondrolysis. It didn’t take long for doctors to discover what was causing the painful condition.

“This goes all the way back to about the year 2000. People who had surgery seven or eight years ago who thought they had recovered are now seeing that they’re losing their cartilage and they don’t know why,” Woodson says. “For a long period of time, physicians didn’t know why either. However, now that the literature is expanding and more and more doctors are finding out about this, they’re telling patients to contact attorneys to get advice on what recourse they may have.”

Several cases are set for trial this year. “I think you’re going to see juries return verdicts against these defendants and then others will start to file lawsuits as well,” Woodson says.

SOURCE: Pain Pumps › Why are there so many lawsuits against pain pump manufacturers?

Intra-articular pain pumps

Intra-articular pain pumps are medical devices that hold pain medication. The devices have a tube with a catheter attached to them and that catheter is approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to be placed in the shoulder tissue for pain relief. The catheter is sort of like a garden hose with holes in it that you place in a flowerbed. Just as water would pass through the garden hose to water plants in the bed, medication is pumped through the catheter of the pain pumps into the shoulder tissue gradually over a 48- to 73-hour period. Once the pain medication has been completely used, the patient is instructed to simply pull the catheter out of his shoulder.

Before pain pumps became available for use, patients were given medication either orally or by injection and would have to be monitored by medical staff. The use of pain pumps allowed patients to go home earlier and require less medical attention post surgery. Used properly, risks associated with pain pumps are minimal and most patients have a relatively good recovery after physical therapy. But then tragedy struck.

“With advice from manufacturers, the pain pump catheters were being placed in the joint space or intra-articular area (as opposed to the joint tissue, as was approved by the FDA) which allowed the pain medication into the joint space,” says Frank Woodson, shareholder with Beasley Allen Law Firm. As a result, “doctors began to see patients suffer severe damage to their shoulder cartilage that we’ve rarely seen before.”

The condition, called chondrolysis, is the loss of cartilage in the joint space and causes extreme pain, loss of motion and in many cases, shoulder replacement. Those who relied on their shoulder strength, found themselves suffering from career-ending injuries.

Approximately 140 lawsuits against manufacturers of pain pumps are currently filed by individuals injured by those pumps. “As patients and physicians learn more about the link between pain pumps and chrondrolysis, I think you’ll see more people come forward,” Woodson says.

SOURCE: Pain Pumps › Pain pump manufacturers knowingly put patients at risk