Did Your Premature Baby Suffer from Necrotizing Enterocolitis (NEC) After Consuming Cow-Milk Based Formula Made by Similac or Enfamil?
You May Be Entitled to Compensation.
TOXIC BABY FORMULA LAWSUITS AT A GLANCE
Who Does This Affect?
Any parent of a premature baby who later developed necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) after being fed cow-milk-based Enfamil or Similac fortifiers or baby formulas.
What Happened (a summary)
Manufacturers of some Enfamil and Similac infant formula products are being sued based on claims that the companies failed to provide warning to healthcare providers and caregivers regarding the risks associated with ingesting these cow-milk-based formulas. It is alleged that there were known and undisclosed or inadequately disclosed risks associated with the development of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) in premature babies who consume these products.
How Can Filing a Lawsuit or Joining a Class Action Help?
Lawsuits provide a legal avenue for reparations and justice. For parents whose children have developed this sometimes-fatal disease, compensation may be available for pain, suffering, loss of quality of life, medical expenses, funeral expenses, and more.
What Steps Can You Take?
By contacting Greenville Injury Lawyers, you can connect with a team of compassionate and dedicated personal injury attorneys highly familiar with taking on large medical and product liability claims. We can help your family get the justice and compensation they deserve.
How Much Does Pursuing Compensation?
Initial consultations at Greenville Injury Lawyers are always at no cost to prospective clients. If your case is a good fit, and there is an agreement to pursue compensation on your behalf, Greenville Injury Lawyers charge ZERO fees unless (and only after) we win your case or secure a settlement.
What is Toxic Baby Formula?
Baby Formula and NEC: What’s the Link?
Although the underlying cause of necrotizing enterocolitis is not yet fully understood, most medical experts agree that giving infant formula to premature babies increases the risk of those newborns developing NEC. Conversely, it has been shown that feeding premature babies human breast milk has the inverse effect, decreasing the risk of developing the disease.
Baby formula may be ‘toxic’ to premature infants when it is made with cow’s milk. Certain compounds in cow’s milk have been proven to damage the lining of the baby’s intestines. This damage can cause premature cell death, leading to the development of a hole in the intestinal wall.
In a healthy intestine, cells that line what is called the ‘lumen’ work to absorb nutrients, delivering those nutrients to the rest of the body’s tissues through both the bloodstream and lymphatic system.
The tightly knit juncture between such cells aids in preventing toxins and bacteria from spilling into other parts of the body. However, it is thought that the ingestion of cow’s milk can contribute to a breaking down of these junctures, allowing toxins and bacteria to leak out and invade the intestinal lining. This, in turn, causes an inflammatory response that can lead to a rupturing of the intestines, sepsis, and potentially death.
How High is the Risk of Developing NEC From Toxic Baby Formula?
Current research indicates a significantly higher rate of NEC among those premature babies who were fed cow-milk-based formulas and/or fortifier products vs those fed human breast milk exclusively.
Data suggests that as compared to premature infants fed solely breast milk, the risk of developing NEC is up to 10x greater for those fed cow-milk-derived products. This startling revelation has led public health organizations and the American Academy of Pediatrics to caution against the use of such products.
What Is Necrotizing Enterocolitis (NEC)?
Classified medically as a digestive disease, necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) most commonly presents in premature newborns and infants. The disease is marked by inflammation of the lining of the intestine, leading to a number of serious complications including severe infection, sepsis, or even death.
Inflation causes damage at the cellular level, leading to a breakdown in the barrier between the intestine and body cavity. When this happens, toxins and bacteria can leak into the gut and bloodstream.
Symptoms of NEC Include:
- Tender, red, or swollen stomach
- Diarrhea
- Abdominal pressure
- Fever
- Low blood pressure
- Abnormal breathing
- Lack of appetite / refusal to eat
- Inability to gain weight
- Changes in heart rate
- Bloody stools
- Green or yellow vomit
- Lethargy
- And more…
Although many infants survive NEC with proper medical care, others develop serious long-term health complications that can have a severe impact on quality of life. And in some cases, those less fortunate may perish from the disease.
Baby Formula Lawsuit
Seeking compensation and justice, as well as a precedent to protect future babies from harm, lawsuits are being filed against two leading makers of cow-milk-based baby formula and fortifiers.
These lawsuits claim that both Abbott Laboratories and Mead Johnson knew of, but failed to inform and warn caregivers, doctors, and hospitals that these products carry a significantly higher risk of developing NEC when fed to premature babies with low birth weights.
It is also alleged that each company knew of but ignored a significant amount of established scientific evidence that baby formulas made from cow’s milk are linked to necrotizing enterocolitis. The lawsuits go on to make claims that Enfamil and Similac baby formula products were marketed as ‘superior or safer alternatives’ than breast milk. A contention that is in clear opposition of scientific and factual evidence.
Baby Formula Class Action
No parent should have to fear for the safety and well-being of their child. Those with premature infants have already been through enough anxiety and concern for their child without adding fears of toxic baby formula to the mix.
At Greenville Injury Lawyers we are dedicated to holding negligent manufacturers accountable for the injustices they have participated in. Our firm has helped clients win over $400 million in recovered settlements to date, fighting some of the largest companies and organizations in the world to bring justice to the ‘little guy’.
As part of an independent lawsuit or class action against these companies, we can help you recover compensation to aid with the care of your child, medical bills, ongoing support and therapy, and much more.
Given the large number of cases and claims involved, we expect that toxic baby formula lawsuits will likely end up in some form of a consolidated class action such as a multidistrict litigation (MDL).
If your child suffered from NEC or complications of NEC after having consumed cow-based milk formula, reach out to us today for a free consultation. If we can help, you only pay when/if we win you a settlement or verdict in court for compensation.