McWhirter, Bellinger & Associates, P.A.

Labels: Pickup Truck Side Crash Tests

The weight loss dietary supplement Hydroxycut has been recalled by the Food and Drug Administration and Lovate Health Sciences (FDA Consumer Warning PDF Here). The recall was announced after the FDA reported serious side effects, including liver failure. To date, the FDA has received 23 reports of serious health problems linked to Hydroxycut products. The agency also received a report of 1 death related to Hydroxycut; a teenage male who used the product.

It was over a decade ago that Fen-phen, an anti-obesity drug, was used as a weight loss supplement. It was later determined that Fen-phen was linked to an increased risk of pulmonary hypertension and valvular heart disease. In 1997 the FDA requested that fen-phen be removed from the market. The FDA noted in the finding from doctors that approximately 30 percent of patients who were evaluated had abnormal echocardiograms, even though they had no symptoms. Soon after the removal of Fen-phen, thousands of lawsuits were filed alleging it caused serious heart conditions and even death.

Now with liver failure and other serious conditions attributed to Hydroxycut products, the FDA had to take action. A 2008 case series and review of herbal supplements noted that Hydroxycut had been suspected to have possible liver toxicity. During this case study, two women developed acute hepatitis during a short time frame of usage. It was also noted that neither of these women had any history of liver problems.

It will be difficult to determine just how many people have been affected by Hydroxycut products because they could be purchased without a prescription. If you have taken Hydroxycut products please see your doctor. For a free consultation regarding Hydroxycut products, please call McWhirter, Bellinger & Associates, P.A. at 1-800-694-0994 or visit their website today. Their offices are conveniently located in Aiken, Camden, Columbia, Lexington, Newberry, Orangeburg, and Sumter, South Carolina.

Airbags and seat belts save lives. But airbags can cause permanent injuries and even death from spinal cord and brain injuries. These injuries can happen to children or any other person short in statue that sits close to the steering wheel or dashboard.

Children riding in the front seat can be seriously injured or killed when an airbag comes out in a crash. Airbags explode with great force and are equivalent to the power of a 12 gauge shotgun shell. Even when belted, it can kill or permanently injure those close to it.

It is important to realize that the energy in a collision increases by the square of the speed. For example, a car that crashes into a wall at 60 mph has FOUR times the energy of a car that crashes into a wall at 30 mph. If you double the speed of a car, from 30 mph to 60 mph, the energy released is squared (900 versus 3600).

Seatbelts and airbags are designed to work together and they perform most safely the greater the distance from passenger to dashboard or steering wheel. Follow these rules to minimize injuries in car:

• Children 12 and under and adults short in statue, should ride restrained in the rear seat.
• Infants should never ride in the front seat of a vehicle with a passenger side airbag.
• Small children should ride in the rear seat in child safety seats approved for their age and size.
• The safest position for a child safety seat is in the middle of the back seat.
• Everyone should always use both lap and shoulder belts.
• Drivers should sit back as far as possible from the steering wheel. Never closer than 10 inches from the center of the steering wheel to the breastbone.
• Increase the distance from the steering wheel to increase the margin of safety in a crash and the risk of injury from both the collision and an airbag.
• Buckle up and slide the seat back as far as possible to allow safe operation.

If you or a loved one has been injured in an accident, call the Law Firm of McWhirter, Bellinger & Associates, P.A. at 1-800-694-0994 for a free consultation.

The four wheel, side by side Rhino manufactured by Yamaha Motor Corporation has become one of the most popular Utility Terrain Vehicles (UTVs) sold on the market in the U.S. and Canada. The Rhino seats the driver and passenger next to each other.

In accidents nationwide, Rhino riders have been killed or seriously injured. Many of the Yamaha deaths have been children. While every accident involving a Rhino can pose a risk of serious injury, when a child is riding, the injuries have often been more severe. In some accidents, children are thrown from the vehicle and have died from injuries where the ATV landed on them.

Lawsuits nationwide have been filed against Rhino charging that the Yamaha Rhino side by side contains multiple design flaws. The vehicle is unduly prone to rolling over even when driven on flat ground. The design flaws include a top-heavy design resulting in a high center of gravity, and a dangerously narrow track width.

In the wake of fatal accidents, Yamaha has recalled the Rhino. Yamaha has also agreed to make free repairs, which the Consumer Product Safety Commission determined was involved in more than 50 accidents, resulting in 46 deaths and hundreds of injuries. Yamaha will make the free repairs to models 450, 660, and 700 that will make them safer and less prone to rolling over.

If you have been injured in an accident involving a Yamaha Rhino, please call McWhirter, Bellinger & Associates, P.A. at 1-800-694-0994.

Fuel economy is important but it can also come at a price of safety. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducted three front-to-front crash tests involving microcars or minicars to midsize models from the same manufacturer. In each of the tests the small cars performed poorly.

The institute chose pairs of 2009 models from Daimler, Honda, and Toyota because these automakers have micro and mini models that earn good frontal crash ratings. Researchers rated performance in the 40 mph car to car tests, like the front-into-barrier tests, based on measured intrusion into the occupant compartment. The stats recorded were the force of impact to the driver dummy and movement of the dummy during the impact. As expected, the laws of physics prevailed: The Honda Fit, Smart Fortwo, and Toyota Yaris performed well in the institutes frontal offset barrier test, but all three were poor performers in frontal collisions with midsize cars.

Size and weight affect injury likelihood in all kinds of crashes. In a collision involving two vehicles that differ in size and weight, the occupants in the smaller lighter vehicle will be at a disadvantage. The larger, heavier vehicle will always push the lighter vehicle backward. As a result, less force will be upon the occupants in the larger vehicle. The IIHS indicated that the death rate in minicars is almost twice as high as the rate in larger cars.

The question then is up to the consumer. While the automakers are downsizing automobiles to use less fuel, it may come at a price as occupant safety will be compromised.

For a free consultation regarding auto accidents, please call McWhirter, Bellinger & Associates, P.A. at 1-800-694-0994 or visit their website today.

Medical Negligence is a ruin in an otherwise superb medical profession. In the United States millions of people visit their doctors and hospitals each year with no negative medical consequences. Doctors and other medical professionals work incredibly long hours under very difficult circumstances. Unfortunately, even though medical negligence occurs to a very small amount of individuals who seek medical treatment, the effects can be long lasting.

Medical Negligence occurs when a medical professional does not fulfill his duties to treat an individual in a standard manner. Every year there are thousands of people who suffer personal injuries from negligent care of a physician or medical professional. Of those, only a few seek legal action and receive medical malpractice settlement.

There are different types of Medical Negligence:

• Surgical Negligence - failure of a surgeon to properly conduct the surgery required
• Medication Negligence – prescribing the wrong medication
• Oral Surgery Negligence – the performing of wrong or faulty dental work
• Nurse Negligence – when the quality is lacking in a nurse

If you have experienced any of these then you may have experienced Medical Negligence. If you have suffered from the following then you may have a claim against the medical provider.

• Pain and Suffering
• Loss of Income
• Loss of Pension
• Debilitating emotional stress
• Disability
• Disfigurement

If you believe you have suffered due to Medical Negligence, please contact a lawyer. For a free consultation, please call McWhirter, Bellinger & Associates, P.A. at 1-800-694-0994 or visit their website today. Their offices are conveniently located in Aiken, Camden, Columbia, Lexington, Newberry, Orangeburg, and Sumter, South Carolina.

Though many are not aware or find it hard to believe, nursing home abuse is tragically a common occurrence. The elderly and incapacitated residents of nursing homes are all too often deprived of basic needs. Examples of abuse in nursing homes include:

• Withholding food
• No access to water
• Medication errors
• Poor hygiene facilities
• Inadequate daily care and grooming

Because of these abuses, nursing home residents may suffer serious injuries including starvation, dehydration, and pressure sores. The harmful results of nursing home abuse can range from discomfort to serious injury and even death. Elderly residents can become victims because they are physically or mentally unable to communicate that they are suffering from abuse. Factors such as understaffed facilities or insufficiently trained employees can also contribute to abuse. Some nursing homes are emphasizing profits over patient care which can lead to physical, mental, or sexual abuse and sometimes, even to the death of a loved one.

Abuse is not always obvious. In most cases it's up to caring and acutely observant family members to detect odd or abnormal behavior. Residents are often reluctant to complain because they are simply afraid of what might happen to them.

If you see or suspect abuse, seek medical care immediately and report the abuse to the administrator of the nursing home. You should then call a law firm experienced in nursing home abuse, like the firm of McWhirter, Bellinger & Associates, P.A. for further guidance.