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Airco, Inc., the world's largest manufacturer of anesthesia equipment,
marketed an artificial breathing machine that assisted patient
breathing during surgery. The machine included a flexible bag
and ventilator that were used to help the lungs expand and contract.
During surgery, it was necessary to switch between the bag and
ventilator. This could be done either manually by connecting a
hose or by turning an optional selector valve on the ventilator.
In 1980, Georgia Huchingson of Little Rock suffered brain and
lung damage caused by lack of oxygen during surgery. A Benton,
Arkansas, jury found that the design of the machine's optional
selector valve was defective because it was conducive to inadvertent
misuse by its operators, resulting in oxygen deprivation to the
patient.
In addition to more than $1 million in compensatory damages,
the jury awarded $3 million in punitive damages against the manufacturer.
The punitive damage award was upheld on appeal in 1982, after
which the manufacturer voluntarily issued a medical device alert
under auspices of the Food and Drug Administration. Further, the
defendant doctors testified at trial that they would never use
the ventilator in the same way again.
Airco, Inc. v. Simmons First National Bank, 638 S.W.2d 660 (Ark.
1982).
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