Trasylol: "This Shouldn't Have Happened"

Pasadena, TXNow that patients are learning about Trasylol more complaints are being aired about the use of the drug. However, patients and their families are still not positive about whether or not they received Trasylol during open heart surgery.

Meanwhile, more people are joining a class action lawsuit against the maker of Trasylol, alleging they were not adequately warned about the drug's risks.

Tish E. is one of the many people trying to determine if a loved one was given Trasylol. Tish's husband had multiple open heart surgeries: the first two took place in 2001 with a subsequent surgery in 2006. In both 2001 and 2006, he suffered kidney failure following surgery. He died shortly following the 2006 surgery. Tish she says that her husband's kidney failure leads her to think her husband was given Trasylol during his surgeries.

The first open heart surgery involved three bypasses. Tish's husband appeared to be doing fine following the surgery, but three days after he was moved to a regular room in the hospital, he had a heart attack and required a second open heart surgery. Following that second surgery, Tish says her husband suffered kidney and liver failure, spent 35 days in the ICU and was on dialysis for approximately three weeks.

However, once Tish's husband recovered from that experience, he was fine. He did not have any more kidney problems until 2006, when he had another open heart surgery to fix a leaky valve. During this surgery, doctors perforated his pulmonary artery, causing severe bleeding.

"He almost bled to death," Tish says. "They told me he lost numerous pints of blood and they could not get the bleeding to stop. He was in surgery for 27 hours. His kidneys failed. But, he survived the surgery. He lived for nine days before he passed away."

Many people wonder under what circumstances Trasylol is administered. It is used to prevent the need for blood transfusions during open heart surgery, but at what point do doctors choose to use it? Do they administer Trasylol if the patient is already bleeding heavily to try and stop the blood loss or do they give it prior to anticipated bleeding?

"I thought he might have been given Trasylol to stop the bleeding," Tish says. "He lost massive amounts of blood and I'm sure they probably used everything to try to stop it.

"He was on dialysis after two open heart surgeries, and he didn't have any kidney problems other than that. Between the surgeries he didn't have kidney problems, once his creatnine levels came up. After the 27-hour surgery, he was on dialysis until he passed away.

"This shouldn't have happened. Something caused his kidney damage and failure."

Although Trasylol has been recalled, there are still many questions surrounding the drug, including when and why doctors would choose to administer it. Trasylol is often given without the patient's knowledge, so many patients who have received it likely do not know. They also likely do not know that if they had serious complications following surgery, Trasylol might have caused those complications.

If you believe you or someone you love was given Trasylol, contact a lawyer to discuss your legal options.