Contaminated alcohol prep pad may have caused sudden death of two year old

Feb 14 2011

A lawsuit filed in Federal court claims that a contaminated alcohol prep pad manufactured by Triad Group, Inc. caused the sudden death of a two year old boy.  The lawsuit claims Bacillus cereus bacteria from a contaminated alcohol prep pad caused a deadly meningitis infection.

"This little boy had undergone a relatively simple procedure for a benign cyst," says attorney Jim Perdue, Jr. in the lawsuit. "He was recovering well until he contracted a Bacillus cereus infection, which is not normally a hospital-acquired infection. Hospital staff had no idea how the bacteria got into the boy's spinal fluid."

On January 3, 2011, a month after the boy's death, Triad Group announced a nationwide recall of all lots of its alcohol pads and swabs due to concerns of Bacillus cereus contamination.

"The missing piece of the puzzle came when the FDA announced the recall for the Triad alcohol pads and swabs for the exact bacteria contamination that killed my son," says his mother, Sandra Kothari.  "These alcohol wipes are used every day in hospitals, clinics and homes.  People think they're safe."

The Food and Drug Administration's website says "use of contaminated Triad Alcohol Group Prep Pads, Alcohol Swabs or Alcohol Swabsticks could lead to life-threatening infections, especially in at-risk populations, including immune suppressed and surgical patients."  Triad Group has sold millions of these alcohol prep products in the US, Canada and Europe.

Triad Group Alcohol Prep products are used to disinfect an area prior to an injection. They were distributed to hospitals, retail pharmacies, and were included in a number of prepackaged injection kits.  The affected products were marketed under the "Triad Group" label and many other private labels.