Class-Action Suit Filed Over Botched CT Scans

An Alabama woman has filed a class-action lawsuit against the makers of a CT scan machine for allegedly exposing her and possibly hundreds of other patients to excess radiation during medical imaging exams.

Becky Coudert underwent a procedure called a CT brain scan perfusion scan in September at a hospital in Huntsville and later developed a bald strip around her head. According to her federal lawsuit against GE Healthcare, the company that made the scanner used in her procedure, Coudert was exposed to radiation levels that were up to 14 times the required radiation.

Coudert’s lawsuit accuses GE of negligence for failing to install warnings on the machines to alert users and patients of radiation overexposure. Hospital officials have said as many as 60 other patients at the same facility may also have been overexposed to radiation.

The suit asks the company to create a fund of at least $5 million to cover the medical bills and other damages for patients exposed to excess radiation during the exams. In some cases, the symptoms of damage done may not be apparent for decades, according to Coudert’s lawsuit.

Cedars-Sinai CT Scans Questioned

The issue of radiation overexposure during CT scans also recently popped up at Cedars-Sinai Hospital in Los Angeles, where at least 250 patients are believed to have been overexposed to radiation during botched CT scans. Several brands of scanners, including GE, were used in the fumbled tests, officials have said.

Patients were given doses of radiation that was eight times as much as needed, but the problem with the scans was not detected for 18 months, Cedars-Sinai officials have said. The Food and Drug Administration announced it was investigating CT scan overdoses in light of the Cedars-Sinai fiasco.

After problems with CT scans surfaced at Cedars-Sinai, officials investigating found similar problems at other Los Angeles-area hospitals, including Glendale Adventist Medical Center and Providence St. Joseph Medical Center in Burbank.

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