Louisiana Accident Attorney Blog

The Ford Motor Co. is recalling over 650,000 of it's top selling F-150 pickups as well as a Lincoln-branded truck because of a problem with the brake hose that could cause the vehicles to lose braking power.

So far, the automaker has recalled Ford F150 and Lincoln Mark LT trucks years 2005 and 2006. This information was posted on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration website on Wednesday.

The Ford trucks affected by the recall are equipped with 5.4-liter engines. The brake hose on those trucks can possibly detach from the manifold, causing the driver to lose the "assist" function, which provides additional power to the brakes, according to the safety notice.

According to the Ford spokesman, Wes Sherwood, the trucks could still be stopped with the remaining brake power, but it would require drivers to apply "more force to the pedal."

To date, Ford has received reports of 11 minor accidents, but no injuries because of the recalled part.

The huge recall covers almost 606,000 vehicles in the United States and comes just as Ford is gearing up to launch all-new versions of its F-series pickup truck line.

U. S. sales of the Ford trucks are down 16 percent this year in a downturn tied to high gasoline prices and a slumping U. S. housing market.

According to Ford, there is a similar recall procedure in Canada as well. 50,000 are on the road in Canada that are covered by the U. S. government recall.

Customers in the United States and Canada affected by the recall could have the brake hoses replaced at Ford dealerships starting in late June.

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65,000 F-Series Super Duty pickups are being recalled by the Ford Motor company.

The recall is being made so that the fuel-tank mounting can be strengthened in order to prevent a gasoline leak in a head on collision.

According to Ford, a front-end crash of 30 mph or more could cause the fuel tank to move forward, spilling fuel and possibly causing it to ignite.

The recall is affecting some 2008 F-250's and F-350 trucks, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration website.

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Ford Motor Co. is recalling 2008 E-350's - 3,331 to be exact. The recalled trucks have a 138-inch wheelbase with a faulty drive shaft assembly.

The National Highway Traffic Administration (NHTSA) reported that "the drive shaft may have been manufactured with a slip yoke that has cracks." The flaw can reduce performance below design specifications.

Over time, the safety agency warns, the slip yoke could fracture without warning, allowing the drive shaft to separate from the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.

Once the recall begins, Ford dealers will inspect the E-350 drive shaft and replace it free of charge. Owners may contact Ford at 1-800-392-3673 or NHTSA at 1-888-327-4236 (TTY 1-800-424-9153).

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Total Body Essential Nutrition Inc. of Woodstock, GA. has voluntarily recalled two drinkable dietary supplements. Allegedly some consumers have been sickened by them from high amounts of certain minerals.

The Food and Drug Administration, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the state health departments are investigating more than a hundred cases of acute poisoning from the products.

"Total Body Formula" dietary supplement in tropical orange and peach nectar flavors in the eight- and 32-ounce bottles and the 32-ounce bottle of "Total Body Mega Formula" in orange/tangerine flavor should not be consumed due to excess amounts of selenium and chromium, according to warnings from the Pennsylvania Department of Health.

The Food and Drug Administration has investigated the products and found extremely high levels of selenium -- up to 40,800 micrograms per recommended serving, or more than 200 times the amount of selenium per serving indicated on the products' labels.

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In what marks yet another manufacturing problem for the biotechnology company, Genzyme Corp. voluntarily recalled more than 10,000 vials of Thymoglobulin, a drug used during kidney transplants.

According to the FDA, the recalled batches of Thymoglobulin appeared to be cloudier, when liquefied, than the form approved by the agency. When liquid is added, the drug should only be slightly cloudy, the agency said.

The FDA has directed consumers to discontinue use of the drugs immediately from the recalled lots and to return the vials to Genzyme. The company said that most of the product has now been consumed.

According to Mr. Piela, the recalled drug was made at the same factory in France. The company has been working with the FDA to address the manufacturing issues and Genzyme had uncovered the latest problem.

A spokesman for Genzyme, of Cambridge, Mass., Bo Piela, said there were no safety threats or efficacy issues involving the recalled vials. He added that the product had been manufactured in the first half of 2007.

Thymoglobulin is made from rabbit protiens and is freeze-dried. They are administered by injection to patients undergoing kidney transplants, to prevent the patient from rejecting the transplanted organ. In 2007, the sales of Thymoglobulin reached $166 million.

In September, the FDA issued a warning letter saying the company had violated the agency's manufacturing rules at a Lyon, France, plant making Thymoglobulin. The warning letter listed violations that had occurred no several occasions and noted that the company's investigations into adverse events were 'inadequate.'

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How has the chemical known as Chondroitin Sulfate gotten into some batches of the blood thinner heparin associated with 19 deaths?

U. S. health officials now are aware that the contamination is a man-made chemical compound known as over-sulfated chondroiton sulfate.

This is less expensive than heparin and is a natural compound that occurs widely and is normally used as a dietary supplement. The over-sulfated version has not been extensively studied.

According to Dr. Janet Woodcock, head of the FDA's Center for Drug Evaluation & Research, the Associated Press reported that "Right now, people should not be alarmed. We have not received any more reports of fatalities of this type since the recall on Feb. 28. We cannot rule in or out whether this was accidentally or deliberately introduced into the product. We are investigating how it go in."

Preliminary testing did not identify chrondroitin sulfate because it mimics heparin. It is less costly to produce than heparin, but the FDA officials could not estimate a cost difference.

Senator Edward M. Kennedy (D. - Mass) is quoted as saying, "it is unacceptable that Americans have died and been seriously injured by what appears to be deliberate tampering. Whether this contaminant was introduced intentionally or by accident, the full force of the law must be brought to bear to bring those responsible to justice. To guard against future abuses, every drug manufacturer needs to inform the FDA of where it sources its ingredients and what it is doing to ensure that these ingredients are pure and potent."

Tests are being done, according to the FDA, to determine if heparin when combined with over-sulfated chronroitin sulfate can produce serious allergic reactions like those reported to Baxter and the FDA.

Heparin is used to prevent blood clots in millions of people with heart conditions, kidney disease and in surgery. It's made from ingredients extracted from pig intestines. Of all the heparin samples tested by the FDA, between 2 and 50 percent was made up of the contaminant. This does not assert that this was counterfeited on purpose.

To date, there have been 785 reported allergic reactions associated with Baxter's heparin. This compares to less than 100 in 2007.

Also, there have been 46 deaths among heparin users.

Baxter recalled all its heparin products following these announcements. APP Pharmaceuticals, Inc., the other major heparin supplier ramped up production to avoid a drug shortage after the recall by Baxter. Tests on APP's have not turned up any contaminants.

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