Premature babies require extra care and attention through the period of their stay in NICU and even after discharge from the hospital. Their quality of life depends on the care and nourishment during their first weeks of life. Premature babies feed on a specially-made baby formula with all the ingredients needed to remain strong and gain weight. The challenge comes when the baby formula chosen and recommended by the hospital harms the baby instead of bringing good health results.

That is the case with Similac and Enfamil, two top-rated baby formula products alleged to cause NEC in premature babies. Evidence shows that cow milk as an ingredient in these two formulas has increased the risk of premature babies developing NEC. The problem is that manufacturers of the two products did not warn parents and doctors of the dangers associated with cow milk in a formula meant for premature babies. As a result, so many babies have been affected across the country, and parents seek compensation.

Now, lawyers are pursuing lawsuits for babies that suffered NEC after consuming Enfamil and Similac formulas. If your child is affected, you could find help seeking compensation from the responsible manufacturers.

Problems Rising From Cow Milk Baby Formula

Cow milk is an ingredient in most infant formulas, but it must be altered to resemble a mother’s milk. The alteration balances the nutrients in the resulting products and makes it easy to digest by babies. However, it is a little different for premature babies. Their health is more sensitive and requires a little more caution. For them, breast milk is more digestible and less harmful. Research has shown that premature babies fed on infant formula based on cow milk tend to develop NEC.

Manufacturers of baby formula are bound by law to provide details regarding the ingredients used in making their products and possible side effects to potential consumers. That would help doctors, caregivers, and parents make informed decisions when administering the products to infants and premature babies.

Studies have confirmed that baby formulas made with cow milk are not safe for consumption by premature babies. They carry the risk of these babies suffering from NEC and slow development. From a journal published by researchers from Ontario McMaster University, when premature infants are fed on infant formula from cow milk and not breast milk, they will be three times more likely to suffer from NEC. These babies could remain in the NICU longer than necessary, and some could lose their lives.

That is why the number of baby formula NEC lawsuits against manufacturers of infant formulas is increasing by the day. Many infants have been affected, and cases are rising by number. Thousands of parents seek compensation for using Similac infant formula, thinking that the product would provide their babies with the same immune and development as breast milk.

The problem with the manufacturers of baby formulas is their failure to provide adequate information to buyers regarding the type of product they have in the market and possible side effects to premature babies. The lawsuits against them have highlighted some of the manufacturers’ marketing strategies suporting their products. It will help parents recover damages incurred after the injury or death of their infants to NEC.

The main issue is the manufacturer’s negligence to warn would-be consumers that Enfamil and Similac infant formulas contained cow milk that would likely affect premature babies. Before these emerging lawsuits, most parents whose infants were affected did not know the link between cow milk and NEC. That is why some remained quiet even after their babies incurred injuries or lost their lives to NEC. The blame mainly shifted to the hospitals, doctors, and caregivers.

Doctors now also face blame for feeding premature infants with cow milk-based infant formula, knowing that they could develop NEC. But doctors have countered these allegations, claiming that they were unaware of the connection between Enfamil or Similac and NEC. Lawyers representing plaintiffs in these lawsuits concluded that the manufacturers failed to properly educate doctors and parents on the risks associated with cow milk-based infant formulas for premature babies. Even today, most general doctors and pediatricians do not know this connection because infant formula manufacturers are still not providing adequate information regarding their products as required by law.

What is NEC?

NEC stands for necrotizing enterocolitis. It is a severe and sometimes fatal disease that occurs in premature babies. It results from a bacteria invasion in the intestinal wall of an infant, causing infection and inflammation. NEC could result in low oxygen supply to the affected baby’s vital organs, partial or total destruction of its bowel, and even death.

Sometimes infants with NEC develop a perforation or hole in their intestine, through which bacteria can spread into the baby’s abdomen or bloodstream. That causes the bacteria to spread very fast to other body parts.

Some cases of NEC are mild, while others are severe. The disease mainly affects nine out of ten babies delivered earlier than their time. Babies likely to be affected are those that are:

  • Delivered before their mother is 37 weeks pregnant(are premature)

  • Fed via a tube leading to the stomach (are on enteral nutrition)

  • Born weighing not more than 5.5 pounds

The presence of the NEC in an infant manifests in a wide range of symptoms, including:

  • Metabolic acidosis — It could be as a result of increased intake of acid from the cow milk-based infant formula, increased endogenous production of acid due to error in metabolism, or inadequate excretion of acid by the baby’s kidneys

  • Green or yellow fuel in the abdomen — Could be seen when the baby vomits

  • Feeding intolerance

  • Abdominal distention

  • Feeding residuals

  • Lethargy

  • Jaundice appearance

  • Reduced bowel sounds

  • Decreased or increased stools

  • Difficulties in breathing

  • Acidosis

  • Bradycardia, or a slower than average heart rate

The disease is progressive. Therefore, it is crucial to identify the symptoms early enough for proper diagnosis and treatment. When diagnosis and treatment are done early enough, the baby could live a full life without complications.

Its Diagnosis

A pediatrician can initially diagnose NEC based on clinical observation of the affected infant. During the initial observation, the pediatrician will check the baby’s temperature, signs of a swollen belly, and other physical symptoms of NEC.

In addition to the cynical observation, a pedestrian could use diagnostic tools like blood tests, blood gas levels, and abdominal imaging to confirm their suspicion.

A blood test will reveal the presence of bacteria and infection in the baby’s blood. A fecal test could indicate the presence of blood in the baby’s poop. Tests like these could detect blood that is not visible to human eyes. An X-ray test could be carried out to show other NEC symptoms like abdominal cavity and air bubbles around the baby’s intestines. Aid bubbles indicate a perforation in the infant’s intestines.

Parents need to see a pediatrician as soon as they see the first signs of NEC. It gives the doctor a chance to diagnose correctly and offer proper treatment before the disease progresses.

Complications Resulting from NEC

A baby with NEC is likely to incur other medical problems, including:

  1. Abdominal Infection

Mild cases of NEC are quick to heal, but complications could develop if the affected baby does not receive proper treatment in time. An abdominal infection could occur if the baby’s intestinal wall develops a hole or perforation that enables bacteria to enter its abdominal cavity. Peritonitis (a type of infection) could result. It increases the baby’s likelihood of incurring sepsis, a fatal blood infection.

  1. Intestinal Stricture

Intestinal strictures affect at least one in every three babies. It refers to the narrowing of a baby’s intestines. The condition could occur a few months after the baby’s recovery from NEC. Narrow intestines make it hard for babies to pass food. The affected infants will require surgery to open up their intestines.

  1. Short Bowel Movement

Short bowel movements could occur when NEC damages a part of the baby’s small intestines. The condition makes it hard for the baby’s body to absorb nutrients and fluids. Babies with this condition require life-long care for their bodies to receive proper nutrients for their growth and development. Some babies will even require tube feedings.

  1. Developmental Delays and Growth Failure

Among the life-long effects of NEC on babies are developmental delays, growth failure, and poor neurodevelopmental outcomes. These are experienced mainly by infected infants that require surgery. Babies with developmental delays and growth failure will need close checkups to monitor their growth and development for the rest of their lives.

NEC Treatment and Management

Treatment for NEC should commence shortly after diagnosis. The doctor and caregiver should continue feeding the infant, as the baby is put on strong antibiotics. The infant will require proper nutrients for their body to fight the infection during this period adequately. The doctor could also intravenously supply other nutrients to the baby’s body until it eliminates the illness and their intestinal tissues are completely healed.

Sometimes nasogastric drainage and circulatory support will be necessary during this period. In extreme cases of NEC, an infant’s intestinal tissues could be left decayed or dead. In that case, the pedestrian will recommend surgery to remove all dead intestinal tissues.

Once an infant’s intestines are infected, they require healing and rest. The initial step would be to stop oral or tube feedings and replace them with intravenous fluids and nutrients. The baby could also need these treatments:

  • Antibiotics — To help it fight bacteria infections

  • Nasogastric tube — A long thin tube that goes through a baby’s nose or mouth to its stomach to suction out fluids and gas

As previously mentioned, extreme NEC cases will require surgical intervention. If the child needs surgery, the doctor will:

  • Create a small stoma or hole in its belly

  • Collect the baby’s large intestines to the stoma

  • Allow the baby’s poop to pass through the hole into a bag right outside the baby’s body.

Once the baby is well and strong enough, the doctor will reattach its intestines and place them back in its abdomen.

The Problem With Cow Milk-based Baby Formulas

Research has connected cow milk-based infant formulas with NEC. Premature babies are more affected because they require more and rapidly increased feeds. That increases their risk of NEC. Few feedings have been seen to decrease this likelihood. But cow milk in infant formulas has increased this risk even more, especially for premature babies. That has resulted in lawsuits against Enfamil and Similac baby formulas manufacturers.

Researchers have been investigating NEC’s actual cause in premature babies for years. Their findings indicate that premature babies fed on cow milk-based formulas are more likely to develop NEC than those fed on breast milk. While the products themselves are safe for consumption by babies, manufacturers ought to have warned their consumers that the products could increase a baby’s risk of NEC due to cow milk as an ingredient. Then, doctors and parents would have made a safer option for premature babies.

Lawsuits Against Enfamil Infant Formula Manufacturers

The law requires manufacturers to produce safe products for consumers. If any product harms its end-user in any way, the user is allowed to file a lawsuit for compensation against the liable manufacturer. Products brought to the market should be adequately labeled, with a complete list of ingredients used in their manufacture. Edible products should provide possible side effects to would-be consumers to warn them of the likely dangers if the product is consumed in large or small quantities or consumed at all.

Lawsuits brought against the manufacturer of Enfamil are due to the injuries and death incurred by infant babies after consuming their product. That is not a case of a harmful product being brought to the market but a somewhat safe product likely to harm premature babies. Baby formula NEC attorneys are considering claims brought by parents and doctors against Mead Johnson Nutrition for failing to warn consumers of the possible risk associated with Enfamil.

If your infant was fed on Enfamil, developed NEC, or showed signs of NEC, you could be eligible for compensation due to the manufacturer’s negligence. Some of the products the affected babies could have consumed include:

  • Enfamil NeuroPro Enfacare — The manufacturer claims that it is perfect for premature infants

  • Enfamil 24 calorie Baby Formula

  • Enfamil Human Milk Fortifier

  • Enfamil NeuroPro EnfaCare Baby Formula — 20 calories with Iron

  • Enfamil NeuroPro EnfaCare Baby Formula — 24 calories with Iron

  • Enfamil NeuroPro EnfaCare Baby Formula — 24 calories, high protein

  • Enfamil NeuroPro EnfaCare Baby Formula — 30 calories with Iron

Lawsuits Against Similac Manufacturers

Similac manufacturers are also facing similar lawsuits for the same reasons as Enfamil manufacturers. Lawyers are evaluating claims against Abbott Laboratories Inc. for their negligence to warn doctors and parents of the possible side effects of their popular infant formulas if consumed by premature babies. If your infant was fed in any of these products and developed signs of NEC, you could be eligible for compensation by the liable company:

  • Similac Human Milk Fortifier

  • Similac NeoSure

  • Similac Human Milk Fortifier

  • Alimentum Expert Care

  • Similac Special Care 24

  • Similac Special Care 20

  • Similac Human Milk Fortifier Concentrated Liquid With Hydrolyzed Protein

  • Similac Special Care 30

  • Similac Special Care 24 With High Protein

Is Your Baby Affected?

NEC is a severe illness that could result in the death of an infected baby if no proper medical intervention is taken immediately after the first signs. If you have observed any of the above-listed symptoms in your child and were recently admitted to a NICU where the baby could have been fed on infant formula, you could join a mass tort action to pursue compensation for your baby’s injuries.

A mass tort action is a combination of many lawsuits prepared, filed, and defended by personal injury attorneys on behalf of many plaintiffs. The truth is that so many babies have been affected and are joining infant formula NEC lawsuits to recover their damages.

Sadly, none of the products have been recalled yet. Lawyers do not want a recall, but the responsible companies warn parents, hospitals, and doctors of the possible side effects if premature infants consume their products. Lawyers also want the companies to take responsibility for the resulting damages and offer settlements that will cover the damages incurred by the affected parents.

Lawsuits against Similac and Enfamil manufacturers are only beginning. Parents have enough time to speak to an attorney and join a mass tort so that, together with other affected families, they can seek compensation for their losses.

Successful Baby Formula NEC Lawsuits

Parents of children that were fed on Enfamil or Similac infant formula and developed NEC have already started pursuing compensation against the manufacturers for their damages. Legal experts advise parents to take action soon enough since there is research and evidence to support their claims.

Example: A premature infant was reportedly fed on Similac and/or Enfamil premature infant formula in the Madison St. Clair Hospital. Sadly, the infant developed NEC which destroyed a large part of its intestines. The intestines had to be surgically removed.

After legal advice, the parents decided to file a case against the responsible infant formula manufacturers for financial relief.

Most NEC lawsuits were first filed against hospitals and doctors, not infant formula manufacturers. Parents believed that doctors and hospitals had the skills and capacity to make it right with their babies. They thought that hospitals and doctors were negligent in causing their children’s injuries or death.

But, there is a likelihood that doctors and hospitals, in general, only made honest mistakes, even though the consequences of those mistakes were grave. Civil court judges would have also awarded punitive damages due to the severity of most of these cases.

But a deeper look into the issue of baby formulas and NEC has revealed a significant connection, which most doctors were previously unaware of. The problem is cow milk and its effects on premature babies. EGH in cow milk blocks the activation of TLR4, a very crucial protein in the body of an infant. The protein regulates the baby’s immune response to bacteria. A simple warning would have saved many situations and even exonerated doctors and hospitals from liability.

Lawyers pursuing baby formula NEC lawsuits argue that manufacturers of Similac and Enfamil knew of the possible side effects of their products on premature babies but chose not to warn parents and doctors to avoid decreasing their profits. If the jurors agree on this assumption, the case would conclude that the manufacturers put the gains ahead of the safety and health of infants. That is why these lawsuits are likely to result in significant compensations. The courts could also award punitive damages because of the gravity of the victim’s injuries.

The aim for most of these lawyers is for infant formula manufacturers to provide an NEC warning on their products and offer a reasonable settlement to the victims. A warning will reduce the possibility of other lawsuits in the future. The compensation will cover the damages incurred by parents of the affected infants.

Cases that will likely receive higher compensation involve infants who require lifelong care and are suffering or in pain. Parents of these babies will require millions of dollars to provide adequate care, including medical care for the children, as long as they need it.

Parents that have lost their infants to NEC will also require substantial compensation for their children’s wrongful death. The loss of a child is painful. It becomes more painful when the parents realize later that their child died due to a harmful formula they were taking.

The lawsuits will also seek compensation for children that endured great suffering and severe symptoms of NEC. Payment will be awarded to those that are still recovering and those that have fully recovered.

Lawyers are still speculating on the amounts to seek in each of those cases, to include them in the lawsuits. It will help the affected parents to detail their damages to help develop an estimated amount that will cover all their injuries.

Mass Torts Against Enfamil and Similac Manufacturers

Parents of babies that have incurred NEC after consuming Enfamil and Similac baby formulas have suffered differently. Therefore, they deserve to be heard and present a separate case against the liable companies before a jury. NEC is different for different infants. Some suffer mild symptoms, which they overcome after the onset of treatment. But others experience more severe symptoms, which take a long time to heal. Some babies live with the devastating effects of the disease, while others lose their lives in the end.

That is why a mass tort would be more suitable for these parents. It gives them a platform to bring individual cases before a judge together with the help of their attorneys. Parents can see that their claims are not unique or extreme because many other victims have been similarly affected.

When so many people suffer injuries due to consuming one or more products from the same manufacturer, they can join together and file a mass tort while each plaintiff retains their case. Civil courts consolidate claims in a mass tort together for quick and effective investigation. It saves the court more time and resources and improves the success rates of the plaintiff’s claims. If the plaintiff wins the mass tort, the victims receive the compensation they deserve for their incurred damages. Injuries can differ from one case to the other. Therefore, payment will not be the same for all claims in a mass tort.

If you are a parent and would like to pursue compensation for the damages your child incurred with NEC or for the wrongful death of your child, this is the time to join a mass tort against Enfamil and Similac manufacturers. Contact an experienced attorney right away, and start preparing your case. Your attorney will contact other attorneys in the mass tort to forge a way forward. Together, attorneys representing plaintiffs like you can collect quality evidence and plan a solid case against the responsible company.

When the mass tort succeeds, you should receive compensation for all your damages, including medical costs, caregiver costs, pain, and suffering. You could also be eligible for more damages if the court awards punitive damages to the victims.

Find a Baby Formula NEC Lawsuit Attorney Near Me

If your infant was diagnosed with NEC and you suspect that it was on cow milk-based baby formula, you could file a lawsuit against the manufacturers of that baby formula for failing to warn parents, doctors, and hospitals of the NEC risk. Research has revealed a close connection between cow milk and NEC on infants, particularly premature babies. Sadly, many parents have lost their children, and others have children who need lifetime care due to NEC. Negligence to warn of the likely side effects of a product is a grave mistake many companies make. At Consumer Alert Now, we offer advice and legal representation to product liability victims from all parts of the country. Call us at 800-511-0747 and let us study the details of your case for quality advice and support.