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Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada - Potential Hepatitis and HIV Exposure. Free Case Review by our Hepatitis and HIV Injury Lawyers and Attorneys.

Keywords: Hepatitis | Lawyer | Injury | HIV | Attorney | Las Vegas (LV) | Endoscopy Center | Lawsuit | Nevada

The Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada routinely reused syringes on multiple patients, a negligent practice which exposed thousands of patients to blood borne diseases, including Hepatitis C, Hepatitis B and HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.  All of these diseases are extremely debilitating and can be fatal.  The Hepatitis injury lawyers at our firm want to hold  the Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada accountable for the gross negligence that occurred there.  It is our contention that the clinic should be responsible for any medical bills, lost wages and pain and suffering caused by this negligence.  Our Hepatitis injury lawyers will work hard to make sure victims of the Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada receive the compensation they deserve.

The Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada

In February 2008, officials with the Southern Nevada Health District announced that a total of  six people contracted Hepatitis C after being treated at the Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada.  Five of them were treated the same day in late September 2007, the sixth is believed to have been infected in July, the district said. The health district advised that anyone who received anesthesia at the clinic from March 2004 to Jan. 11 2008 should be tested for the virus, along with Hepatitis B and HIV.

 The Southern Nevada Health District's patient notification will be the largest of its kind in the country.  People treated at the Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada in Las Vegas were warned by health officials that they were at risk for, Hepatitis C and Hepatitis B and HIV because of the unsanitary practices employed by the Endoscopy Center of Las Vegas.   Because these unsanitary practices had been used at the clinic for years, Nevada health officials said that upwards of 40,000 people could have been exposed to Hepatitis C and Hepatitis B and HIV

The Southern Nevada Health District had begun investigating the Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada in January 2008, after it was notified of three people who had been treated there had been diagnosed with Hepatitis C.  The district's investigation revealed that unsafe injection practices related to the administration of anesthesia medication could have exposed patients to the blood of other patients.   

Hepatitis C, Hepatitis B and HIV may have been spread when clinic staff reused syringes and used a single dose of anesthesia medication on multiple patients, the district said. A syringe would become contaminated by the backflow of blood when patients with a blood-borne disease were injected with medication. That syringe, in turn, would be reused to withdraw medication from a different vial. That vial could become contaminated and result in infection. Several nurses and other practitioners at the Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada told health investigators that they reused syringes at the direction of the clinic's management.  Reusing syringes violates medical standards for infection control.  Our  Hepatitis injury lawyers will work hard to make sure the Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada is held accountable for this negligence.

Hepatitis

Hepatitis is a virus that causes inflammation of the liver and produces a variety of symptoms. Often, hepatitis can be asymptomatic, producing no visible symptoms. Hepatitis A, B, C, and D are the most common types of Hepatitis found in the United States. People that are at the greatest danger of contracting hepatitis include: intravenous drug users, health care workers, individuals with multiple sex partners, people who have contracted an STD in the past; and those living with a person who has a form of chronic hepatitis.

There are various forms of Hepatitis, but the varieties do share common symptoms.  These include  fatigue, fever, loss of appetite, abdominal pain, nausea, muscle or joint pain, dark colored urine and jaundice. Good sanitation and hygiene, avoiding contaminated foods and water, practicing safe sex, getting vaccinated, not using intravenous drugs and not sharing personal products are all important measures to follow in avoiding Hepatitis. Our Hepatitis injury lawyers have represented clients who were exposed to these forms of Hepatitis by healthcare providers and others who have failed to follow sanitary protocols.

Prescription medications can also bring about Hepatitis. Glucose-lowering drugs known as thiazolidinediones (TZDs), which include Actos and Avandia include Hepatitis as a side effect.

Hepatitis C

Hepatitis C is a blood disorder that is  transmitted through blood-to-blood contact, such as that which occurred when practitioners at the Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada reused syringes.   Hepatitis C  is for the most part is asymptomatic, but approximately 70% of those infected will develop serious liver disease.  Hepatitis C is a risk factor for liver cancer and can lead to the need for a liver transplant. By February 2008, six patients of the Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada had already tested positive for this devastating disease.  The infectious disease attorneys at our law firm believe that there could be many more Hepatitis C victims as a result of the clinic's negligence, and we want to see to it that anyone who contracted this disease due to this clinic's unsafe practices is justly compensated for their suffering.

Hepatitis B

Hepatitis B is another blood-borne virus that attacks the liver.  Hepatitis B can clear up on its own in about two weeks.  However, cases of chronic Hepatitis B can also occur.  Chronic Hepatitis B is associated with a chronic inflammation of the liver, leading to cirrhosis over a period of several years. This type of infection dramatically increases the incidence of liver cancer.  The unsanitary practices employed by the Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada may have exposed tens of thousands of people to Hepatitis B.  Again, this situation was entirely avoidable, and the Hepatitis injury lawyers at our firm believe anyone who contracted Hepatitis B because of these practices is due compensation.

Other Forms of Hepatitis

There are several other types of Hepatitis that can be spread through unsanitary practices.  is spread through oral contact with infected fecal matter. Hepatitis A often causes an acute illness, however it is also possible for Hepatitis A to be asymptomatic (without symptoms). Hepatitis A can also be transmitted person-to-person via contact or from contaminated food or water. Yet another form of the diseases, Hepatitis D only occurs in those already infected with Hepatitis B.

Legal Help for the Suffers of Hepatitis

If you or a loved one where treated at the Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada and now suffer from Hepatitis or any other blood borne disease, you have valuable legal rights.  Please contact one of our experienced Hepatitis injury lawyers today by filling out our online form or call 1-800 LAW INFO (529-4636).