THE FIRST MRI SCAN OF A HUMAN INTEGRATING MEDICINE AND SPORTS
PRODUCT LIABILITY BASICS
Product liability cases should be smooth and straightforward; however, that’s rarely the case. When a business is involved in one of these suits, its insurance company provides it with a team of lawyers who work to ensure your liability payments are as low as possible. Here’s what you need to know to ensure you can hit the ground running on the road to fulfillment and recovery. COMMON PRODUCTS IN LAWSUITS When it comes to drugs, pharmaceutical manufacturers are obligated to create safe medicines and issue recalls if medications are found to be defective. However, oversights in the system can cause dangerous drugs to be prescribed without proper warning or testing. When it comes to faulty medical equipment that leads to things like defective hip and knee replacements, the manufacturing companies are held accountable. Similarly, in lawsuits regarding defective car parts, claims may be based on defects in any parts initially built and sold by the manufacturer. In cases involving dangerous toys, it again falls on the manufacturer. Finally, when it comes to harmful foods, either the restaurant where the food was served or the manufacturer is held responsible. DO YOU KNOW HOW AND WHY YOU’RE SUFFERING?
Whether it’s football, hockey, rugby, or any other contact sport, when a player goes down, fans immediately want to know why. An injury could mean a player is out for the season, which could also cause the entire team to falter. Concerned fans will wait for hours to hear the player’s prognosis. A sports injury is severely damaging because it can potentially end the athlete’s career or alter their quality of life. Injured players hope to get a diagnosis and treatment from the medical professionals around them and get back in the game as soon as possible. MRI technology is an essential part of that process. An MRI scan is used to produce an accurate diagnosis of the player’s injury, but that’s not all. It can also assist doctors in estimating recovery time and determining if the player will need surgery. With so much depending on the MRI scan, it’s no wonder that fans, coaches, teammates, and injured players themselves wait anxiously for the results. Though it’s now standard practice to use MRI scans to help diagnose sports injuries, the MRI device itself is less than 50 years old. On July 3, 1977, the first recorded MRI scan of a human body was performed by Dr. Raymond Damadian. Although it took five hours to produce that first image of the patient, the machine successfully scanned his chest and revealed his lungs and heart. Damadian named the machine Indomitable, an homage to his team’s struggle in developing the technology that allowed the device to succeed. Thanks to Damadian’s determination and the brilliant people on his team, today’s medical professionals can use MRI machines to scan broken bones, detect cancerous cells, take full photos of the brain, and reveal blood clots. MRI scans are useful for athletes and nonathletes alike. The results inform a diagnostic plan that will help them get back to playing the sport they love, whether it be their career or a hobby.
TYPES OF LIABILITY LAWSUITS Generally, there are three types of product liability lawsuits, including manufacturing defect, design defect, and insufficient instructions or warnings. In manufacturing defect cases, how a product was built creates the danger to individuals, even if the design of the product is good. However, with design defect cases, the design itself makes the product unsafe. Insufficient instructions or warning cases arise when the instructions and warnings that come with a product are insufficient, making the product harmful to handle.
If you find yourself in a liability lawsuit, you need an experienced lawyer who knows how to handle the insurance companies and their lawyers. The lawyers at Shuttlesworth are happy to answer any questions or concerns you may have.
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