A recent study has found that when children are admitted to the hospital, the course of medical treatment they receive typically involves the administration of multiple medications. Too often these medications interact with each other and cause serious side-effects and injuries in the young patients. But what was even more alarming about the study’s results is the way medical personnel often ignore the alarm systems put in place which are supposed to alert them to possible drug interactions.

The study was conducted by doctors from the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, utilizing data from 12 months of medical records provided by 43 children’s hospitals from around the country. The research team discovered that of the approximately half million children who were hospitalized during that year, almost half were given medication combinations which have the potential for harmful side-effects when interacted with each other.

Potential dangerous side effects from the combinations of medications include breathing problems, sedation, bleeding issues, and a reduction in iron absorption. Another serious side effect is the unknown reduction of effectiveness that one drug may have on another, as it may potentially eradicate the healing powers the medication has which a child needs to get better.

Of all the children’s medical data that was used for the study, 49 percent were given dangerous combinations of drugs. The two most common categories prescribed were opioid painkillers and antibiotics.

Hospitals do have safeguards in check to monitor for potential drug interactions in patients. These electronic alerts ring an alarm when a patient is receiving a medication which can be harmful when interacted with another medication the patient may be receiving. However, a real concern to the researchers of this study was how medical personnel do not pay attention to these alarms. The reason for this is there are so many drugs that do interact, these alarms are constantly going off, and doctors are left suffering from what the study calls “alert fatigue.”

If your child has suffered a serious illness or injury because he or she was given an incorrect or dangerous combination of medications, contact an experienced Westport medical malpractice attorney to discuss your case and legal options.

Innovative technology may enable thousands of paralyzed accident victims to walk again. Biometric exoskeletons are currently being tested by patients at different medical facilities across the country. So far, the results have been positive.

Marketed under the name Indego exoskeleton, the device works on the same principle as a Segway does. If a user leans forward, the device moves faster, while leaning back slows it down. The Indego essentially does the walking for a paralyzed person, allowing him or her to stand up and walk away. The device is constructed of with equipment that regulates a user’s posture, returning him or her to a balanced position.

When a user leans forward, the Indego enables him or her to stand up. Once standing, if a user leans forward again, the device will vibrate, which is a signal that a forward step is about to occur. To stop that step, a user only needs to lean back. If a user stays leaning forward, the device will continue to take steps until he or she leans back. The device even allows users to climb stairs.

The device is light, only weighing approximately 27 pounds and can snap apart in order to be easily transported. The manufacturers are hoping to receive FDA approval sometime this year.

According to national statistics, there are almost over one million people who have some form paralysis as a result of a spinal cord injury. Approximately 30 percent of injuries—362,000—happened from work-related accidents. Almost one-fourth of those injuries—311,000—are the result of a motor vehicle accident. Another 16 percent of spinal cord injury victims—206,000—were injured in a sports-related accident, and 9 percent of victims—112,000—were injured in some type of fall.

The cost of living with a spinal cord injury can be financially devastating. In the first year after a spinal cord injury, the average expenses can be anywhere between $228,566 and $775,567. The estimate lifetime cost is approximately $681,843 to over $3 million, depending on the severity of the injuries.

If you or a loved one suffers from paralysis or other spinal cord injuries as a result of an accident, contact an experienced Westport personal injury attorney to find out what legal recourse you may have against the party or parties responsible for the accident.

A fatal train crash has occurred—this time in Valhalla, New York. Six people were killed and another 15 injured when a commuter train smashed into an SUV that was stopped on the tracks at the crossing. According to officials, the “electrified third rail on the tracks became dislodged after the impact and pierced the floor of the front train car.” Almost 400 feet of track will need to be replaced. The investigation into what caused the crash is currently underway by both state and federal officials.

Railroad Crossing Accident Causes

One of the most tragic, and often avoidable, fatal accidents are those that occur at railroad crossings. The impact of a train slamming into a car at a crossing has been compared to the impact of a car crushing a tin can. In the U.S., every 90 minutes a train and vehicle collide. Every year, there are approximately 250 people killed and another 1,000 seriously injured in railroad crossing accidents.

Many of these accidents are often caused by a vehicle driver attempting to get around the gates of the crossing, or through flashing lights which signal that a train is coming through. By law, drivers are required to stop when these warning signals are in place. Most of these crashes occur within 25 miles of the vehicle driver’s home.

However, it is not always an impatient driver who is at fault in these accidents. Statistics from the Federal Railroad Administration reveal that more than 80 percent of railroad crossings have inadequate warning signals, leaving drivers completely unaware that a train is approaching.

The consequences of train/vehicle accidents can have a dangerous ripple effect. Many of these crashes result in the train derailing off the tracks which greatly endangers the passengers. There are also dangers when the involved train is a freight train. Many freight trains transport hazardous cargo, which can put an entire community in danger if the toxins are exposed to the atmosphere in a crash.

Contact a Westport Wrongful Death Attorney

If you have lost a loved one in a train or vehicle accident, please contact an aggressive wrongful death attorney in Westport, Connecticut to discuss your case and determine what legal recourse you may have against those parties whose negligence were responsible for your family’s tragic loss.