The parents of at least two babies sickened in an infantile botulism outbreak are suing the makers of ByHeart baby formula at the heart of a nationwide recall.
Attorney Bill Marler, who represents two families suing the company and specializes in foodborne illness cases, argues the company was negligent by selling defective formula.
“Each of these families incurred several hundreds of thousands of dollars in medical bills,” Marler said. “One had a life flight that was over $120,000 to get from one hospital to another.”
Marler said there will likely be more cases reported.
“I think, unfortunately, we’re going to see more children getting sick because the product just got off the market and the incubation period could be four to six weeks,” Marler said.
At least 15 babies across 12 states have “suspected or confirmed cases of infant botulism after consuming ByHeart’s powdered infant formula, according to the Food and Drug Administration. No unopened product has tested positive for contamination.
“It can cause paralysis of the muscles, it can stop your heart, it could stop breathing,” Marler continued. “We’re just lucky that at this stage we haven’t seen any of that.”
No deaths have been reported, but at least two infants in Texas have been hospitalized.
“One is seven weeks old and the other is five months, and they both had relatively similar hospital courses,” Marler said. “They were in (pediatric intensive care units) for almost two weeks, and then on feeding tubes...one was for two weeks, one for four weeks.”
Botulism is treated with antitoxin and intensive supportive care, which may include mechanical ventilation if breathing muscles are paralyzed.
ByHeart’s products have already been pulled off shelves nationwide, but were sold online at Target, Albertsons and Whole Foods.
If you have leftover formula, the company said to stop giving it to your child.
ByHeart apologized for causing families “immense anxiety and fear,” and advised parents who see their child experiencing symptoms of infant botulism to “seek medical attention immediately.”
AP Health writer Jonel Aleccia contributed to this report.
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