Man’s Foot Amputation Leads to Lawsuit Against Amazon for Defective SteriCare Products

We expect the products we buy in a brick and mortar store or online are safe for their intended use. Nobody expects serious medical conditions to occur due to regular use, especially an amputation. Unfortunately, this was the case for a South Carolina man.

The man and his wife filed a product liability lawsuit after using a SteriCare product they bought on Amazon. The product was contaminated, causing the man to have his foot amputated.

On February 9, the couple filed the complaint in the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina. The lawsuit was brought against various companies responsible for the manufacturing, distribution, and sale of the sterile water. Defendants include Amazon.com Inc.,  Nurse Assist LLC, Tower Three Partners LLC, Neurovend LLC, Spinnaker International LLC, BPGC Management LP, and R Investments LLC.

The man used SteriCare sterile water products that were later included in a nationwide Nurse Assist Recall issued in November 2023. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) had warned consumers that faulty packaging seals on certain sterile water and saline products could allow bacterial contamination.

Other victims have filed Nurse Assist SteriCare infection lawsuits after developing complications linked to the contaminated products, many which were severe and even fatal. The products were sold by Amazon and other major retailers for wound care and other medical treatments.

The man in this case had gone to the hospital in January 2023, due to a red and swollen wound on his left foot. He was treated for a methicillin susceptible Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA) infection. The man had to undergo debridement of the wound and he was given a PICC line for antibiotic treatment.

The man was discharged with instructions on cleaning the wound. He was given outpatient wound debridement and a wound vac. In addition, he purchased Nurse Assist SteriCare through Amazon for at-home cleaning and treatment.

A 500 mL bottle of SteriCare from Stateside Medical Supply arrived on February 9, 2023. By  February 24, the man was back at the hospital due to fever, labored breathing, and mental issues. He was hospitalized and diagnosed with fever, shock, sepsis, and strep (group A) pyogenes bacteremia.

The infection continued to progress and the man developed sepsis, requiring the man to undergo a below knee amputation of his left leg on February 25, 2023. He also underwent a revision of the amputation two days later due to bleeding.

Several months later, the products were recalled due to contamination risks. That was when the man received notification from Amazon that he had purchased contaminated SteriCare water.

The man and his wife filed a product liability lawsuit stating violation of South Carolina Code, failure to warn, negligent design, negligent failure to warn, defective design and manufacture, breach of warranty, and negligent misrepresentation.

Contact Us Today

Contamination can occur in many products but when products are not sterile, they can cause infections, sepsis, and organ failure.

Injured by a defective product? Contact a Columbia products liability lawyer from Simmons Law Firm today. We will hold the manufacturer accountable to you for the harm they have caused. Schedule a consultation today by calling (803) 779-4600 or filling out the online form.

Source:

aboutlawsuits.com/amazon-stericare-lawsuit-saline-solution-infection-leg-amputation/