A jury awarded $7.65 million in damages to the family of a Kansas man who allegedly contracted a fatal infection from a contaminated device while undergoing heart surgery at Kansas City-based University of Kansas Hospital, The Kansas City Star reported April 28.
After a 12-day trial and more than three hours of deliberation, the jury attributed 88% of the fault to the University of Kansas Hospital Authority and 12% of the fault to LivaNova USA, the medtech company that manufactured the heater-cooler device. LivaNova’s share of the damages amounts to $918,000.
The lawsuit is one of 31 lawsuits that have been filed against the hospital and LivaNova over the deaths of 25 patients who allegedly were infected while undergoing open-heart surgery. The lawsuits center around Mycobacterium chimaera, a slow-growing bacterium found in the soil and water. The rare infection is associated with a global outbreak of infections among patients who have undergone open-heart surgery featuring a heater-cooler device,. which contains pumps that circulate water to regulate a patient’s temperature. If not sterilized properly, the aerosolized bacteria are pushed out of the device by exhaust fans and can enter the patient’s open cavity. Infections can take weeks or years to show symptoms, and symptoms are nonspecific, such as fatigue, swelling, persistent cough, fever and nausea.
According to the lawsuits, of the 25 patients allegedly infected with M. chimaera, 11 have died and the others are living with life-altering health problems.
Ten lawsuits are still pending, and the rest have either been settled confidentially or dismissed.
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