Key Points 

• Sepsis, bacteremia, pneumonia, tuberculosis, and drug-resistant “superbug” infections have all been linked to procedures performed with contaminated Olympus scopes. 
• Federal testing found that up to 5.4 percent of properly collected duodenoscope samples tested positive for high-concern organisms after cleaning and disinfection. 
• Patients hospitalized with a serious infection after an Olympus scope procedure may qualify to file a lawsuit and receive compensation. 

Why It Matters 

Infections linked to Olympus scopes are frequently diagnosed days or weeks after the procedure that caused them. Hospitals do not always tell patients that a medical device was involved, and many patients treated for sepsis or a bloodstream infection never learn that the same scope had been used on another patient hours earlier. Identifying the illness that followed a Olympus scope procedure is often the first step toward identifying a viable claim. 

Infections Linked to Contaminated Olympus Scopes 

Lawsuits against Olympus Corporation have alleged that the company’s reusable endoscopes, duodenoscopes, bronchoscopes, and ureterorenoscopes can cause serious and potentially life-threatening infections. 

Our law firm, Hissey Mulderig & Friend, is currently investigating claims involving serious infections linked to Olympus scope procedures. In the following guide, we explore the different types of infections that have been linked to Olympus scopes, and who may qualify to file a lawsuit after undergoing treatment with these devices. 

If you or a loved one developed a serious infection after undergoing a medical exam with an Olympus scope, you may qualify to file a lawsuit and receive compensation. Find out whether you qualify or start your claim today by calling Hissey Mulderig & Friend toll-free at 1-866-806-8117, or by sending us a message using the free claim submission form on the right side of this page. 

What Infections Are Caused by Olympus Scopes 

The conditions below are the infections most closely associated with contaminated Olympus scopes and are the infections that support a claim. 

Sepsis 

Sepsis is the body’s extreme response to an infection, in which the immune reaction damages the patient’s own tissues and organs. It can develop within hours of bacteria entering the bloodstream and can cause a rapid drop in blood pressure, organ failure, and death. Sepsis following an Olympus scope procedure typically requires emergency treatment, intensive care, and a prolonged hospital stay. 

Bacteremia 

Bacteremia means the presence of bacteria in the bloodstream. It is the mechanism by which a localized contamination becomes a systemic illness, and it is a common finding after biliary and pancreatic procedures performed with a contaminated duodenoscope. Bacteremia frequently precedes sepsis and is treated with intravenous antibiotics. 

Bacterial Infection Requiring Hospitalization 

Not every Olympus scope-related infection progresses to sepsis. Some patients develop a bacterial infection serious enough to require admission to a hospital and treatment with intravenous antibiotics, without an initial diagnosis pointing to the device. Hospitalization within 90 days of an Olympus scope procedure is one of the central qualifying criteria in this litigation because it reflects an infection that ordinary outpatient treatment could not resolve. 

Pneumonia or Severe Pulmonary Infection 

Bronchoscopes are used to examine the lungs and airways, and their long, narrow working channels present the same cleaning difficulties found in gastrointestinal scopes. Federal adverse event data on reusable flexible bronchoscopes identifies Pseudomonas, Serratia, and Klebsiella among the organisms most frequently reported, all of which can cause pneumonia and other severe lower respiratory infections.  

The agency’s findings appear in its safety communication on flexible bronchoscopes, which documented 867 reports of infection or contamination between 2015 and 2021, including seven reports of death. 

Tuberculosis 

Mycobacterium is among the organisms most frequently named in federal reports involving reusable bronchoscopes, such as those manufactured by Olympus. This category includes Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Medical literature has documented transmission of tuberculosis through contaminated bronchoscopes, including cases identified through DNA fingerprinting. Tuberculosis diagnosed within 90 days of a bronchoscopy is a qualifying condition in the Olympus scope litigation. 

Drug-Resistant Infection 

Drug-resistant organisms, often called superbugs, are at the center of the Olumpus scopes lawsuits. Because these infections resist standard treatment, a drug-resistant diagnosis within 180 days of an Olympus scope procedure is a qualifying condition, and the diagnostic window is longer than for other infections. 

Some of the drug-resistant infections that have been linked to Olympus scope procedures include: 

Carbapenem-Resistant Enterobacterales (CRE) 

CRE are gut bacteria that resist carbapenems, a class of antibiotics generally reserved for serious infections. The CDC reports that CRE caused roughly 12,700 infections and more than 1,100 deaths in the United States in 2020, and that a subtype known as NDM-CRE is extremely difficult to treat.  

CRE was the organism behind the hospital outbreaks that first drew national attention to the Olympus scopes outbreak, and it remains the infection most closely associated with the litigation. 

Klebsiella pneumoniae 

Klebsiella pneumoniae is a bacterium that can cause pneumonia, bloodstream infection, and wound infection, and it becomes far more dangerous when it acquires carbapenem resistance.  

Research examining bacterial biofilm recovered from duodenoscopes identified Klebsiella pneumoniae as the most frequent multidrug-resistant pathogen involved in reported ERCP outbreaks. The same organism has been recovered from contaminated Olympus bronchoscopes. 

Escherichia coli (E. coli)

E. coli is classified by federal regulators as a high-concern organism, meaning a bacterium more often associated with disease. Drug-resistant strains, including extended-spectrum beta-lactamase producing E. coli, have been traced to contaminated Olympus duodenoscopes in hospital outbreak investigations.  

Infections from E. coli can produce severe abdominal illness, bloodstream infection, and, in resistant cases, treatment that lasts weeks and requires intravenous antibiotics. 

Vancomycin-Resistant Enterococcus (VRE) 

VRE is a resistant strain of Enterococcus commonly acquired in healthcare settings. Because Enterococcus lives in the digestive tract, it is well positioned to be picked up by an Olympus scope during a gastrointestinal procedure and carried to the next patient.  

VRE infections are difficult to treat because vancomycin, the antibiotic normally used against Enterococcus, is ineffective. 

Pseudomonas aeruginosa 

Pseudomonas aeruginosa thrives in moist environments, which makes the interior channels of a reusable scope an ideal reservoir. Pseudomonas infection of the lungs is particularly serious in patients with existing respiratory disease. 

The New England Journal of Medicine documented an outbreak of Pseudomonas infections traced to flexible bronchoscopes, and federal regulators list the organism among the high-concern bacteria found on reprocessed duodenoscopes. 

Mycobacterium 

Mycobacterium is among the organisms most frequently named in federal adverse event reports involving reusable bronchoscopes, such as those manufactured by Olypmus. This category includes Mycobacterium tuberculosis and nontuberculous species.  

These infections deserve particular attention because they develop slowly. A patient may not show symptoms until weeks or months after the bronchoscopy that caused the exposure, which makes the connection to the procedure easy to miss. 

Serratia 

Serratia is a bacterium that can cause pneumonia, urinary tract infection, and bloodstream infection, and it appears alongside Mycobacterium, Pseudomonas, and Klebsiella in the federal reporting data on contaminated bronchoscopes. Like Pseudomonas, Serratia persists in water and moist equipment, including automated reprocessing machines. 

Other Complications Linked to Olympus Scope Procedures 

Contamination is not the only claim in the Olympus scope lawsuits. Federal recalls have also addressed components that detach, break, or malfunction during a procedure. This can lead to a number of serious and potentially fatal complications, including:

Organ or Tissue Damage 

An Olympus scope or an accessory that fails during use can injure the tissue it contacts. Reported harms include mucosal injury, tissue tearing, and damage requiring surgical repair. 

Organ Perforation 

Perforation is a tear or puncture of the gastrointestinal tract, airway, or urinary tract. It is a recognized complication of Olympus scope procedures, and it supports a claim when a defective device or component caused it. 

Endoscopic Device Malfunction 

Olympus has recalled components that can come apart inside a patient. A recalled single-use distal cover was withdrawn because it could unexpectedly detach from a duodenoscope during use, and an aspiration needle recall addressed components that could eject into the airway and require bronchoscopic or surgical removal. 

Procedure-Related Hemorrhaging 

Bleeding caused by a malfunctioning device or a component that breaks during a procedure using Olympus scopes can require transfusion, emergency intervention, or additional surgery. 

Death Due to Device or Component Failure 

Families who lost a loved one to a device failure or a component malfunction involving an Olympus scope procedure may be able to pursue a wrongful death claim, in addition to families who lost a loved one to a scope-related infection. 

Why Contaminated Scopes Continue to Transmit Infection 

Duodenoscopes such as those manfactured by Olympus contain a component known as the elevator mechanism, a small hinged part at the tip of the scope that creates recesses standard brushes cannot reach. Blood, tissue, and bacteria trapped in these spaces can form a biofilm, a protective layer that shields bacteria from disinfectant.  

Investigators reviewing the outbreaks that began in 2013 noted that they occurred even where manufacturer instructions and professional guidelines had been followed correctly. 

Federal testing reflects the same problem. Post-market surveillance studies ordered in 2015 were designed on the expectation of a contamination rate below 1 percent. Later interim results showed as many as 5.4 percent of properly collected samples testing positive for high-concern organisms.  

A prospective study at 16 clinical sites sampled 859 newer-model and 850 older-model Olympus duodenoscopes and found high-concern organisms on 4.1 percent and 6.6 percent of samples respectively. 

Who Qualifies to File an Olympus Scope Lawsuit 

Patients who underwent an Olympus scope procedure in or after 2015 may be eligible to file if they meet the following case criteria: 

1. Sepsis or bacteremia following the procedure 
2. A bacterial infection requiring hospitalization within 90 days of the procedure 
3. Pneumonia or a severe pulmonary infection within 90 days of the procedure 
4. Tuberculosis diagnosed within 90 days of the procedure 
5. A drug-resistant infection, such as CRE or an E. coli superbug, diagnosed within 180 days of the procedure 
6. Organ or tissue damage, including perforation 
7. An endoscopic device malfunction involving dislodgement or breakage 
8. Procedure-related hemorrhaging 
9. Death due to infection or device or component failure 

Additional detail on procedures and outcomes is available in the firm’s guide to who qualifies to file an Olympus scope claim, and patients uncertain whether their illness is connected can review how an infection may be linked to a contaminated scope.  

Find Out If You Qualify for an Olympus Scope Infection Claim 

Patients who developed a serious infection or sustained another qualifying injury following a procedure involving an Olympus scope may be eligible to file a lawsuit and receive compensation for medical expenses, lost income, pain and suffering, and other losses. 

If you or a loved one developed a serious infection after a scope procedure, the attorneys at Hissey Mulderig & Friend can review your situation at no cost. There are no legal fees unless we recover compensation in your case.  

Find out whether you qualify by calling the lawyers at Hissey Mulderig & Friend toll-free at 1-866-806-8117, or submit your case details online to start the process of filing your claim today.