If your baby was born prematurely and diagnosed with necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) after being fed Similac, Enfamil or other cow’s milk-based infant or baby formula at the hospital or NICU, you may be entitled to recover compensation from a baby formula necrotizing enterocolitis lawsuit case or settlement claim.
A team of products liability injury lawyers and class action attorneys is investigating potential lawsuit cases and settlement claims involving prematurely born babies who were diagnosed with necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) after being given Enfamil, Similac or other cow’s milk-based infant formula at the hospital or NICU.
Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) is a gastrointestinal disease that primarily affects premature babies (i.e., infants born before the 37th week of pregnancy) when tissue in the small or large intestine becomes inflamed (i.e., enterocolitis or inflammation of the intestine or colon) causing the tissue to die (a/k/a necrosis or tissue death of the intestinal mucosa).
Necrotizing enterocolitis is one of the most common and devastating diseases in neonates, affecting newborns at a rate of about 1-3 in every 1,000 births. According to the NEC Society, every year in the U.S., thousands of babies develop necrotizing enterocolitis and hundreds of babies die from NEC, which has a mortality rate of about 30%.
Baby Formula Necrotizing Enterocolitis Lawsuit
Baby formula necrotizing enterocolitis lawsuit and settlement cases potentially being investigated include claims involving premature babies who were diagnosed with necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) after being fed cow milk-based baby formula at the hospital or NICU, including:
- Similac baby formula
- Enfamil infant formula
- Other cow-milk based infant formula
- Other baby formulas
Baby formula lawsuits filed in federal courts have been consolidated into an MDL, styled In Re Abbott Laboratories, et al., Preterm Infant Nutrition Products Liability Litigation, MDL Case No. 3026, U.S. District Court, Northern District Illinois. Defendants in the baby formula lawsuits have included Abbott Laboratories, Abbott Laboratories, Inc., Mead Johnson & Company, LLC, and Mead Johnson Nutrition Company.
Preterm Babies & NEC Injury Claims
NEC typically develops after the first 2-3 weeks of life, after milk feeding begins. A risk factor for necrotizing enterocolitis is formula feeding (non-human milk feeding) premature babies. According to a study, premature babies fed cow milk-based infant formula are 6-10 times more likely to develop necrotizing enterocolitis than infants fed human breast milk.
According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, all preterm infants should receive human milk (mother’s own milk, fresh or frozen, should be the primary diet, and if the mother’s own milk is unavailable, pasteurized donor milk should be used) and neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) should prevent the misadministration of human milk.
Necrotizing Enterocolitis Signs & Symptoms
Necrotizing enterocolitis signs and symptoms can potentially include:
- Blood in stool
- Poor feeding
- Feeding intolerance
- Swollen or bloated belly
- Abdominal distension
- Large distended belly
- Abdominal discoloration
- Green fluid in stomach
- Difficulty breathing
- Pauses in breathing (apnea)
- Low heart rate (bradycardia)
- Low blood pressure (hypotension)
- Hole in intestines
- Temperature instability
- Sluggishness
- Lack of energy
- Erythema (abnormal redness of skin)
- Low platelet count
- Vomiting of bile
- Bubbles in intestinal wall (pneumatosis intestinalis)
- Diarrhea
- Decreased activity
- Failure to thrive
- Intestinal inflammation
- Intestinal tissue death (necrosis)
Tests and procedures used to diagnose necrotizing enterocolitis can include physical examination, abdominal x-rays, ultrasonography, occult blood test (guaiac test to detect blood in stool), complete blood count (CBC), and electrolyte level tests, among others.
NEC Complications
Complications from necrotizing enterocolitis can potentially include, among others:
- Organ failure
- Bowel death
- Short bowel syndrome
- Inability to absorb enough nutrients
- Malabsorption
- Peritonitis
- Redness, swelling and inflammation of lining of abdomen
- Sepsis
- Infection
- Intestinal perforation (pneumoperitoneum)
- Hole in the intestine wall
- Hole in bowel
- Removal of intestines
- Leakage of bacteria from intestine
- Scarring of intestines
- Intestinal blockage
- Intestinal stricture (narrowing of the intestines)
- Neurodevelopmental impairments
- Respiratory failure
- Cardiovascular issues
- Liver problems and/or
- Death
- Other necrotizing enterocolitis complications
Necrotizing Enterocolitis Treatment
Necrotizing enterocolitis treatments can include surgery by a pediatric surgeon (to remove destroyed tissue and organs, to drain infected fluid and to perform a temporary ostomy to open wall of intestine to allow bowels to heal, orogastric suction), gastrointestinal rest, gastric decompression, fluid resuscitation, stopping regular feedings and using intravenous (IV) catheter for nutrients (total parenteral nutrition or TPN), antibiotic therapy, mechanically assisted breathing, platelet and red blood cell transfusion, among others.
If your child was injured or died from necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) after being fed Enfamil, Similac or other cow milk-based baby formula at the hospital or NICU, you may be entitled to compensation from a necrotizing enterocolitis lawsuit case or settlement claim. Contact a products liability injury lawyer to request a free case review.
*If you or a loved one are experiencing health issues, side effects or complications from a product, we urge you to promptly consult with your doctor or physician for an evaluation.
**The listing of a company (e.g., Abbott Laboratories or Mead Johnson & Company, LLC) or product (e.g., Enfamil or Similac) is not meant to state or imply that the company acted illegally or improperly or that the product is unsafe or defective; rather only that an investigation may be, is or was being conducted to determine whether legal rights have been violated.
***The use of any trademarks, tradenames or service marks is solely for product identification and/or informational purposes.
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