Hepatitis Case Goes to Trial

The Las Vegas Review-Journal is reporting that one of the first cases stemming from an outbreak of hepatitis C linked to a Las Vegas endoscopy clinic has gone to trial.  Las Vegas resident Henry Chanin says he became infected with the infectious disease after a nurse anesthetist reused a single-dose vial of anesthetic between patients at the Endoscopy Center of Southern Nevada.

Courthouse News Service reports that Chanin’s case is the first of thousands of lawsuits to be tried in court. Attorney Robert Eglet, who represents Chanin, says drug manufacturers encouraged clinicians to reuse the single-use vials.

As many as 50,000 endoscopy patients were notified by the Southern Nevada Health District in 2008, urging them to get tested for HIV and hepatitis C and B.