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"I can no longer play with my grandchildren": a Latina woman claims in lawsuit that she lost an eye due to contaminated drops

2023-03-24T02:17:04.958Z


Clara Oliva, 68, of Florida, says that after using EzriCare Artificial Tears, she developed a bacterial infection in her right eye and gradually lost her sight until it had to be removed. Her complaint is not the first for these products.


Clara Oliva says that her life

changed radically after using some eye drops last year, from the EzriCare brand.

The 68-year-old Florida resident

He recounted in an interview with Telemundo News this Thursday that, after using the drops,

he developed a bacterial infection in his right eye and gradually lost his sight, until his eye had to be removed.

"I am no longer the same as before. I can no longer work, I can no longer drive, only here on the corner, to the supermarket. I can no longer play with my grandchildren as before, because stability does not allow me," Oliva said from his house in the city of Miramar.

Earlier this month, the woman filed a lawsuit against the manufacturers of the drops, alleging permanent injuries.

The complaint alleges that Oliva is also losing vision in her left eye.

Hispanic woman claims eye drops blinded her and files lawsuit against manufacturer

March 15, 202303:54

His case is not the only report of harm associated with the use of artificial tears and eye drops from different manufacturers.

Three people have died and four others have had to undergo operations to remove the eyeball due to bacterial infections linked to bacteria-contaminated eye drops, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The federal agency has identified 68 patients in 16 states who were affected by

Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a type of bacteria resistant to most antibiotics

.

Eight of them have lost vision in at least one of their eyes and some have had to receive a corneal transplant.


"I am no longer the same as before. I can no longer work or play with my grandchildren"

The bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa is usually found in water, soil, and on the hands of healthy people.

The infections usually occur in hospitals and affect people with weakened immune systems.

This drug-resistant strain had never been seen in the country before this outbreak, according to the CDC.

"As if I had glass" in my eye

"It hurt a lot, as if I had sand in my eye. On the second or third day it felt as if I had glass, crystals, and day by day that increased," Oliva told Noticias Telemundo.

[A flesh-eating bacterium lurks in the oceans]

The lawsuit filed on her behalf states that "as a result of the Artificial Tears' defects, numerous consumers, including plaintiff, suffered permanent catastrophic injuries."

"We are asking for compensation for the economic damages that have been caused by these companies. There are medical damages and also suffering, because she (Oliva) is going to need a lot of help because of this," said the woman's lawyer, Natasha Cortez, from Grossman Roth Yaffa Cohen law firm.

Alert for use of eye drops related to a death and cases of permanent blindness

Feb 2, 202300:53

The companies named, Global Pharma Health Care, EzriCare and Delsam Pharma, have not responded to requests for comment from Noticias Telemundo.

Most of those affected reported having used eye drops from these manufacturers before suffering medical problems.

The most cited brand was EzriCare among those affected.

These drops have already been withdrawn from the market, along with Artificial Tears and artificial eye ointment from pharmaceutical company Delsam Pharma.

After the CDC's announcement in January, Global Pharma announced that it would voluntarily recall all batches.

The brands also placed warnings on their web pages.

Clara Oliva assures that she lost an eye due to the use of contaminated eye drops. Telemundo News

However, until January, EzriCare maintained that it had no consumer complaints and decided to withdraw the drops on February 1, upon learning of the investigation by health authorities.

warning signs

The lawsuit points to Clínica Leon Medical Center, which told Noticias Telemundo that, following the CDC's notice, it immediately contacted possibly affected patients to stop using the drops.

They indicated that any patient who needs an appointment in reference to this matter will coordinate a consultation with a health professional.

The clinic added that it empathizes with what Oliva is going through and cooperates with the authorities in the investigations.

CDC Investigates Eye Drops That Could Have Blinded Three People

Feb 1, 202303:12

According to Dr. Jacobo Peña, from Mount Sinai Hospital in New York, "the eye, through the tear, is connected to the nostrils and these through the nose are connected to the lungs. In this way, a bacterium can move from back and forth until it reaches the bloodstream.

Deaths can occur when the bacteria gets into the blood.

Not all patients had eye infections: others had respiratory or urinary tract infections.

The CDC first alerted the public to the danger of this bacterium in a statement dated January 20.

The agency works with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and state health departments to identify other potentially affected individuals.

The CDC recommends seeking medical help if you experience these symptoms of an eye infection:

  • Yellow, green, or clear discharge from the eye.

  • Eye pain or discomfort.

  • Redness of the eye or eyelid.

  • Sensation of having something in the eye (sensation of a foreign body).

  • Increased sensitivity to light.

  • Blurry vision.


Source: telemundo

All news articles on 2023-03-24

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