March 10, 2010

General Motors Recalls 1.3 Million Vehicles Over Steering Motor Problem

General Motors Co. Is recalling 1.3 million Chevrolet and Pontiac compacts cars to repair or replace steering motors which can fail causing the vehicle to be difficult to steer at lower speeds. While this may not be an insurmountable problem for some drivers, the Georgia injury lawyers recognize that it may be a serious problem for older or elderly drivers who may surprised by the loss of the power steering and be physically unable to steer the vehicle. Under those circumstances a power steering failure could cause an automobile accident with devastating consequences.

According to an article published by the Associated Press today, General Motors told the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration about the recall on Monday. NHTSA began an investigation into 905,000 of the models on January 27th after getting 1,100 complaints that the cars lost their power steering. The complaints included 14 crashes and one injury.

If you or a loved one have been injured in an automobile accident involving a recalled vehicle, contact the Georgia injury lawyers at Finch McCranie, LLP .Our firm has been representing injured victims in products liability claims for over 45 years.

March 9, 2010

Insulin Pump Dangers

Insulin pump failures and defects are a serious and potentially deadly problem.The Food and Drug Administration announced last week that it has seen an increasing number of hardware and software problems with insulin pumps, tiny devices worn by thousands of diabetics to deliver insulin.
The FDA noted that critical insulin pump problems seem to exist across manufacturers. There have been 18 recalls of devices over a five-year period, including recalls by a Roche Holding AG unit and Medtronic.

The FDA is convening an advisory panel of outside medical experts to discuss what actions might be taken to minimize risks associated with the devices in these recall situations
Insulin pumps are primarily used by people with Type I diabetes, a condition in which the pancreas produces little or no insulin, a hormone needed to help the body properly use sugars from foods. People with Type 1 diabetes need to administer insulin daily whether through a pump or other methods like shots.

The more common form of diabetes, Type 2, which is often associated with obesity and typically develops later in life, is managed with oral medications designed to help the body properly use insulin, although some cases do require insulin.

The FDA said the number of Type I diabetics using insulin pumps has increased, with about 375,000 U.S. users in 2007, up from about 130,000 in 2002.

Manufacturers are required to report problems potentially associated with devices to the FDA. The FDA conducted a review of insulin pump-related adverse-event reports and found nearly 17,000 reports from Oct. 1, 2006, through Sept. 30, 2009. The reports don't necessarily mean a device caused a problem but serve as a signal for more investigation. Even if a device is functioning properly patients can inadvertently misuse the device. Of the reports, about 12,000 reported a patient injury (such as problems with blood glucose levels) and 310 deaths.

The agency said the information provided by manufacturers involving deaths "was typically incomplete." The agency said in 225 of the deaths reported the device problem was listed as "unknown," although in many cases the device was never returned to the manufacturer for additional follow-up.

However, in 41 death reports, a device problem wasn't identified but the circumstances involving the death involved diabetic coma and problems associated with blood-sugar levels being too high or too low, suggesting the device may not have been working properly.

March 4, 2010

Tire Comes Off Van Resulting In Death Of Innocent Georgia Hyundai Driver

Today WSBTV reported on a tragic automobile accident that occurred on Interstate 285 near Bouldercrest Rd. A white van somehow lost a tire which bounced across the concrete median wall and struck a Hyundai Sonata automobile going westbound on the interstate. The impact of the tire caused the death of the driver of the Hyundai.

From the standpoint of a Georgia injury lawyer, this is a case that needs immediate and through investigation to determine why the tire came off of the van. From the photograph of the van on the internet, it appears like the van may be a commercial vehicle. Had the van recently been serviced? Had the tires recently been rotated? Was there a catastrophic mechanical defect? Is there a product liability case? In any event, this van needs to be immediately inspected by experts to determine what happened.

I remember years ago as a high school student when I was working in a friends garage. A woman drove her car into the shop complaining about a noise. As it turned out, she had recently had her tires rotated at another garage. Unfortunately, they had finger tightened the lug nuts on one tire but had failed to tighten them with an impact/air wrench. Over the course of the day, the lug nuts began to work themselves loose. Fortunately for her and others, she had some warning about what surely could have been a terrible accident.

The Georgia injury lawyers at Finch McCranie, LLP have been representing victims of automobile accidents, truck accidents and defective product cases for over 45 years. If you or a loved one have been injured as a result of the negligence of someone, call us to discuss your rights. It is always in your best interest to get your lawyer involved in the case immediately.

February 25, 2010

Some Chrysler Minivan's May Have Defective Airbag Sensor

Chrysler Group LLC announced on yesterday it will replace a front airbag crash sensor in more than 355,000 minivans. Careful not to call it a “recall”, Chrysler says it’s “safety improvement campaign” covers its 2005 -2006 Chrysler Town and Country and Dodge Grand Caravan minivans sold in the United State and Canada.

Chrysler’s “safety improvement campaign” came about because they discovered that under certain environmental conditions one of the front airbag sensors could crack allowing water to enter the sensor potentially rendering it inoperable. In a carefully worded document Chrysler sent to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration to notify them of the “safety improvement campaign”, Chrysler said inter alia, “Until the vehicle is repaired, the airbags may not provide the enhanced protection in the event of a crash.”

As Georgia injury lawyers, we have seen and litigated many product liability cases. It is clear that, at present, in the event of an automobile accident involving Chrysler’s 2005 -2006 Chrysler Town and Country and Dodge Grand Caravan minivans potentially the front seat passengers of those vehicles would have no protection and might be subjected to serious injuries and possibly death in the event of a head-on collision.

If you or a loved one have been seriously injured as a result of a defective and dangerous product of any kind, call the Georgia injury lawyers at Finch McCranie, LLP to discuss your legal rights.

February 22, 2010

Single Vehicle Truck Accident Results In Death Of Georgia Man

When Georgia injury lawyers hear about single car automobile accidents or single vehicle truck accidents, we always wonder whether the cause of the accident may have been related to a product defect, such as a defective tire or front end part. Today for instance, the White County News today reported that a Cleveland, Georgia resident, Marcus Carl Chambers, age 30, was killed early Friday morning when his pickup truck veered off Ga. 115 west of Cleveland. According to the article the 1999 GMC Sonoma truck was traveling westbound on Ga. 115 when it ran off the road and overturned, ejecting the driver. Chambers, who had not been wearing a seat belt, was pronounced dead at the scene. Police are reportedly continuing their investigation.

While the cause of this crash may have been something as simple as the driver falling asleep, it is always prudent to look for other causes when investigating automobile accidents and truck accidents. The Georgia injury lawyers at Finch McCranie, LLP have represented many families in wrongful death cases which involved defective products. If you or a loved one have been seriously injured in an accident involving a potential products liability case, call us for a free consultation.

February 22, 2010

Yaz/Yasmin - Gall Bladder Damage

Recently, the Georgia injury lawyers at Finch McCranie, LLP got a call from a former client who advised us that her 21 year old daughter had been having gall bladder problems that led to her having her gall bladder removed. It turned out that she had been taking one of two related dangerous drugs that have become associated with such health problems, Yaz. Yasmin became a very popular seller for Bayer Corp. almost immediately upon release to the public in 2001 (Yaz was approved in 2006). Both are oral contraceptives that combine progestin with estrogen to prevent pregnancy. Bayer’s earlier commercials for Yaz claimed it was not only an effective birth control, but that it also provided relief from PMS and acne. Although the side effects were played down in the original commercials, the FDA demanded new spots be aired that were more forthcoming about potential risks. Yasmin and Yaz share an ingredient; drospirenone, which is a component of progestin. Drospirenone has been associated with health risks that are not present in other forms of progestin. It may increase potassium levels in the bloodstream which could result in serious health issues, such as cardiac arrhythmias. This becomes a serious problem for people who suffer from obesity, diabetes or high blood pressure. Symptoms to be noted are: a sudden numbness, confusion, vision problems, speech or balance difficulties, chest pain, nausea, migraine headaches, jaundice, insomnia, depression and behavioral changes, as well as changes in the woman’s menstrual cycle.

If you or a loved one have taken these drugs and been injured as a result, call the Georgia injury lawyers at Finch McCranie, LLP.

February 19, 2010

Crib Safety Regulations Announced

Defective and dangerous infant cribs have become a major problem across the United States. Since September 2007 the Consumer Product Safety Commission, CPSC, has recalled more than 6 million cribs due to dangerous designs and defects. These problems include failures related to drop sides, hardware and wooden slats.

Consumer advocates and health professionals have long complained that federal safety requirements governing cribs do not address the durability of drop-sides on cribs and related hardware, as well as wood strength and quality and other issues.

Wednesday, the chairman of the CPSC, warned crib makers that her agency is cracking down on defective equipment and will push through tougher federal requirements for cribs.

"Now is the time to create a state-of-the-art crib standard and not let special interests hijack the process," Inez Tenenbaum told industry executives, regulators and consumer advocates at the annual meeting of the International Consumer Product Health and Safety Organization.

Tenenbaum said. "I say no more to the tired tactic of blaming parents in the press when CPSC announces a recall that involves a death. Take responsibility and show respect to the grieving family, yes, even if they are pursuing litigation. Those who tread into this arena when CPSC has found your product to be defective will be called out."

Tenenbaum announced her agency will issue a new safety standard for cribs this year and that the CPSC is launching a new "SafeSleep" initiative for babies and toddlers to speed recalls and more quickly alert the public about defective products.

The CPSC is also overhauling its computer systems. Under legislation passed by Congress in 2008, the CPSC is required to create a database to make consumer complaints regarding products available to the public for the first time.

The database is expected to be active next year and according to the CPSC will allow consumers to report product incidents, to search for incident reports on products they own, and to stay apprised of safety warnings from CPSC.


February 19, 2010

Man Sues Over Dangerous Over-The-Counter Drug - Zicam Cold Remedy Nasal Spray

Dangerous products seem to be everywhere these days. This is particularly true when it comes to pharmaceuticals and over-the-counter drugs. This week the New York Daily News reported that a Manhattan man has filed suit against the manufacturer of Zicam Cold Remedy Nasal Spray that he used from 2006 to 2009. The man claims that as a result of using the product, he has lost both his dense of taste and smell. The lawsuit claims that the manufacturer knew or should have known that studies dating back to 1937 have shown that topical applications containing zinc ions can cause a loss of taste and smell. The lawsuit further claims that the manufacturers representations that the product was safe and effective were false. According to the article, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a public health warning last summer warning consumers to stop using all Zicam nasal products that contained zinc because they had received over 130 reports from people who claimed to have lost their sense of smell and taste after using the product.

The Georgia injury lawyers at Finch McCranie, LLP have represent victims of dangerous products ranging from electrical appliances to deer stands for over 45 years. If you or a loved on have been seriously injured as a result of using or coming in contact with a dangerous product, call us today at (800) 228-9159.

February 19, 2010

Man Sues Over Dangerous Over-The-Counter Drug - Zicam Cold Remedy Nasal Spray

Dangerous products seem to be everywhere these days. This is particularly true when it comes to pharmaceuticals and over-the-counter drugs. This week the New York Daily News reported that a Manhattan man has filed suit against the manufacturer of Zicam Cold Remedy Nasal Spray that he used from 2006 to 2009. The man claims that as a result of using the product, he has lost both his dense of taste and smell. The lawsuit claims that the manufacturer knew or should have known that studies dating back to 1937 have shown that topical applications containing zinc ions can cause a loss of taste and smell. The lawsuit further claims that the manufacturers representations that the product was safe and effective were false. According to the article, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a public health warning last summer warning consumers to stop using all Zicam nasal products that contained zinc because they had received over 130 reports from people who claimed to have lost their sense of smell and taste after using the product.

The Georgia injury lawyers at Finch McCranie, LLP have represent victims of dangerous products ranging from electrical appliances to deer stands for over 45 years. If you or a loved on have been seriously injured as a result of using or coming in contact with a dangerous product, call us today at (800) 228-9159.

February 17, 2010

Government Demands Production Of Documents From Toyota

This week the Transportation Department served Toyota with legal documents demanding that they produce certain documents related to the recent massive Toyota product recall in the United States. The government wants to know when and how Toyota learned of the safety defects in millions of its vehicles involving the entrapment of gas pedals by floor mats and "sticky" gas pedals. Toyota has 30 -60 days to respond to the government's request for the production of the documents.

Although Toyota has denied any electronic defect which would cause sudden engine acceleration, many believe that neither the floor mat issue or "sticky" gas pedals would cause a vehicle to accelerate to high speeds. Many Toyota owners have testified that the gas pedal did not stick but rather that there was a sudden, sustained and unexplained acceleration of the vehicle. It has been estimated that since 2000, there have been in excess of 30 automobile accidents resulting in death as a result of this problem.

If you or a loved one has been injured as a result of being involved in an automobile accident or truck accident involving a Toyota product, call one of the Georgia injury lawyers at Finch McCranie, LLP.

February 16, 2010

Salmonella Outbreak Linked To Pepper

Federal officials say 225 people in 44 states, including Georgia, have been sickened by salmonella in imported black pepper used in the preparation of salami and other types of Italian sausage.

Salmonella is a bacteria that can cause serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people and others with weakened immune systems. Healthy people infected with salmonella can have fever, diarrhea, nausea, vomiting and abdominal pain. In rare circumstances, salmonella infection can spread to the bloodstream and result in severe illnesses such as arterial infections and arthritis.

Daniele International, a Rhode Island company recalled 1.2 million pounds of ready-to-eat salami Jan. 22, after state health officials and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention linked the outbreak to the company's products. Daniele expanded the recall Feb. 4 to include 23,754 additional pounds of salami products.

Of those sickened by the product, officials say about 26 percent had to be hospitalized. No deaths have been reported. Victims of the outbreak are up to 93 years old, with a median age of 39.
This is the second time in less than a year that an outbreak of salmonella illness has been linked to pepper. Last March, 42 people fell ill after eating tainted white and black pepper sold by Union International Food of California.

The salami, sopressata and other products were packaged under Daniele as well as the Boar's Head and Black Bear of the Black Woods brands and were sold by several national chains, including Costco and Wal-mart and online through Amazon.com.

Health officials say anyone who experiences sickness after eating an Italian sausage should seek medical help.

February 14, 2010

AEDs recalled

Our product liability lawyers have previously written about the advantages of AED,, automated external defibrillators. Last week a major manufacturer of these devices issued a recall.

Cardiac Science Corp. on Feb. 3 announced a voluntary recall after
determining approximately 12,200 of its automated external
defibrillators may not deliver an electric shock during resuscitation
attempts.

A company press release said Cardiac Science found the problem through
its internal quality systems and has not received any complaints. The
affected AEDs were manufactured or serviced between Oct. 19, 2009, and
Jan. 15, 2010, and include the following models:

* Powerheart 9300A, 9300E, 9300P, 9390A, 9390E
* CardioVive 92532
* CardioLife 9200G and 9231

According to a press release, AEDs manufactured between August 2003 and August 2009 may have resistors that fail and go undetected by periodic self-tests.

Each affected AED should immediately be removed from service since it may not deliver the expected therapy.
Cardiac Science announced that all affected AEDs will be replaced at no charge to the customer. Cardiac Science will contact customers and will send replacement AEDs as soon as they are available

February 12, 2010

Did Former Regulators Help Toyota Kill Probes

Toyota may have fended off earlier attempts by government agencies to investigate the deadly sudden acceleration problems which led to the recent recall. Bloomberg news is reporting that former federal regulators hired by Toyota helped end at least four U.S. investigations of unintended acceleration by company vehicles in the last decade.

According to the report, Christopher Tinto, vice president of regulatory affairs in Toyota’s Washington office, and Christopher Santucci, who works for Tinto, helped persuade the NHTSA to end probes including those of 2002-2003 Toyota Camrys and Solaras. Both men joined Toyota directly from NHTSA, Tinto in 1994 and Santucci in 2003.

While all automakers have employees who handle NHTSA issues, Toyota seems to be alone among the major companies in employing former agency staffers to do so.

Possible links between Toyota and NHTSA may fuel mounting criticism of their handling of defects in Toyota and Lexus models tied to 19 deaths between 2004 and 2009. Three congressional committees have scheduled hearings on the recalls.

In one example given of the Toyota aides’ role, Santucci testified in a Michigan lawsuit that the company and NHTSA discussed limiting an examination of unintended acceleration complaints to incidents lasting less than a second.

Toyota recently recalled 2.3 million U.S. cars and trucks with a potentially defective accelerator pedals. That followed Toyota’s decision in November to recall 4.48 million vehicles in the U.S. and Canada because floor mats might trap gas pedals while they were depressed.

Combined worldwide recalls for pedals, floor mats and a software fix to adjust brakes on the Prius and other hybrid models rose to more than 8 million vehicles as of Feb. 8.

All four of the probes the Toyota aides helped end were into complaints that the unintended acceleration was caused by flaws in the vehicles’ electronic throttle systems. Toyota has denied that the system is a problem.

February 9, 2010

Toyota Brake Recall

Toyota on Tuesday announced another global recall for defective automobiles. This time, more than 400,000 Prius and other hybrid cars are being recalled due to braking problems. The recall comes on the heels of the massive recall of Toyota vehicles for sudden acceleration problems.
Toyota has been criticized for attempting to grow sales while sacrificing quality and for being slow to recall vehicles with dangerous and deadly defects.

The recall will address what Toyota describes as a software glitch in the brakes of the Prius and three other hybrid models. The problem has been reported as causing a brief and sometimes frightening delay in perceived braking capacity on icy or bumpy roads.

Toyota says the problem can be fixed by dealers in about 40 minutes. The recall will apply to 223,000 hybrids sold in Japan, along with 133,000 Prius cars, 14,500 Lexus HS250h vehicles in the United States, and about 53,000 Prius cars in Europe. It begins in Japan on Wednesday and in the United States according to Toyaota in the United states as soon as possible.

The latest model of the Prius, which was rolled out last May, was the best-selling car in Japan last year and has also sold well in the United States. The car is bigger, more powerful and gets better mileage than earlier Prius models.

The 2010 model of the car uses a two-stage braking system that includes regenerative braking to capture energy from the wheels, as well as conventional hydraulic brakes. On snowy or icy roads the brakes can seem to soften for a split second when an anti-lock braking system kicks in, according to the company.

Toyota claims the delay is not the same as brake failure, and there have been no reported accidents or injuries because of the problem.

Toyota has come under pressure from the Japanese government, which said last week that it was looking into customer complaints about the brakes. The chief of the recall department at the Ministry of Transport said Toyota should have taken action sooner.

February 8, 2010

Did Toyota Delay Recall ?

Toyota is being taken to task for delaying the recall of vehicles subject to sudden acceleration. Amid reports that Toyota is going to recall its highly successful hybrid, the Prius, for brake problems, there are serious questions being raised as whether the automaker and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration responded quickly enough to reports of sudden acceleration in some of its other models.

Insurer State Farm has revealed that it notified NHTSA in late 2007 that it was seeing an increase in sudden acceleration trends with other Toyota and Lexus automobiles. State Farm said it received numerous inquiries about alleged unwanted acceleration problems in Toyota and Lexus vehicles in recent years.

Toyota has undergone several investigations about such concerns starting in 2004, when complaints were lodged about sudden acceleration in the 2002 and 2003 Toyota Camry and Lexus ES models. NHTSA opened a file on Toyota in 2007 to look into acceleration issues on Lexus models, but closed it seven months later.

It wasn't until after the death of a California state policeman and his family in a Lexus incident that that Toyota issued recalls. The incident was recorded on a very disturbing 911 tape. If you have not heard the call, it can be located by Googling.

Since the incident, Toyota has recalled 5.2 million Toyota and Lexus models in the U.S. for floor mat issues, and 2.5 million in January over sticky gas pedals.

Congress is also studying Toyota's and NHTSA's reactions. On Wednesday, the House committee on Oversight and Government Reform is holding a hearing on the gas pedal issues. On Feb. 25, a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee is holding a hearing on whether Toyota and NHTSA acted swiftly enough.

Japanese newspapers reported Sunday that Toyota would soon announce a recall to deal with Prius brake problems. In a letter to U.S. dealers over the weekend, Toyota said it will inform them of the fix to the Prius problem this week.

January 29, 2010

Unprecedented Dangerous Product Recall

The Georgia injury lawyers at Finch McCranie, LLP have seen our share of dangerous products recalled for one reason or another; however, last week's recall of numerous Toyota models of automobiles and trucks probably sets a new record. In late 2009, Toyota issued a recall of 4.2 million vehicles because it was thought that they could interfere with the gas pedal and cause sudden acceleration. Now Toyota has issued a recall affecting 2.3 million vehicles and has suspended the sale of eight models, including their most popular model, the Camry, over faulty gas pedals that could stick and cause unexpected acceleration and result in an automobile accident.

Toyota is working with CTS Corp., which manufactures gas pedals for Toyota, to redesign the pedals and to find a remedy for what is believed to be a condensation problem which can cause the pedal to move slowly or in some cases get stuck.

In the meantime, there are thousands of potentially dangerous vehicles of the road which could suddenly accelerate and cause serious injuries to the occupants and others or even cause the wrongful death of innocent people.

If you or a loved one is injured as a result of the sudden acceleration of a Toyota product, call one of the Georgia injury lawyers immediately for a free consultation. In all of these cases, it is crucial that the automobile be preserved so that it can be inspected by experts.

January 24, 2010

Toyota’s Sudden Acceleration Problems Mount

Last fall Toyota announced the largest auto recall in U.S. history after numerous sudden unintended acceleration accidents were reported, many of which resulted in fatalities. Now, Toyota has announced an additional recall of 2.3 million vehicles to correct this same problem. Why the additional recall? It appears that Toyota is doing so because ABC News is soon to report an increase in sudden acceleration cases since the recall last year. According to news reports, there have been 60 new cases of sudden unintended acceleration cases involving Toyota vehicle.

In one tragic occurrence outside of Dallas, Texas, four people were killed when a Toyota sped off the road through a fence and landed upside down in a pond. Even though Toyota has long blamed maladjusted floormats for the unintended acceleration problem, however, in this particular accident, the floormats were found in the car’s trunk where the owners had been advised to put them as part of the earlier recall. Thus, the evidence continues to mount that this problem with Toyotas is not caused by floormats but rather by onboard computer glitches and other engineering issues.

While we are pleased that Toyota has finally recalled its dangerous products, obviously, it is disturbing that Toyota refused to do so earlier for all affected vehicles. From the reported news coverage, had it done so, it may be that an additional 60 cases involving injuries and/or fatalities may have been avoided.

January 24, 2010

Graco Recalls Potentially Dangerous Strollers

Georgia injury lawyers know that defective and dangerous products of all types are sold in this country. The use of some of the dangerous products have resulted in serious injuries and in some cases death. Several years ago, the Georgia injury lawyers at Finch McCranie, LLP represented the family of a young boy in a products liability case. The boy died in a house fire caused by a defective humidifier. The types of dangerous products run the gamut.

A new product recall involving baby strollers was reported just this week. After the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission got reports of children's fingertips being amputated, Graco Children's Products, Inc. a division of Newell Rubbermaid, recalled a million and a half strollers. The recall applies to Graco's Passage, Alano and Spree Strollers and Travel Systems, which were sold at various retailers, including Walmart, Target, Toys "R" Us from October 2004 to December 2009. The CPSC has received reports of 5 fingertip amputations and 2 fingertip lacerations.

If you or a loved on have been injured as a result of a dangerous product, call the Georgia injury lawyers at Finch McCranie, LLP for a free consultation.

January 20, 2010

Chrysler Recalls Vehicles Over Brake Safety Issue

Georgia injury lawyers close attention to dangerous product recalls. In a filing with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Chrysler Group LLC announced the recall of 24,177 vehicles due to a potential defect in a brake system that could result in automobile accidents from sudden brake failure.

The recall includes 2010 model Chrysler Sebring, Dodge Avenger and Nitro, and Jeep Liberty, Commander and Grand Cherokee SUVs. The recall also applies to 2009-2010 model year Dodge Ram trucks.

According to Chrysler, the clip retention tab on the brake pedal pin on some of the vehicles was improperly formed, or not installed, during the manufacturing process. Although Chrysler is unaware of any automobile accidents related to the defective product, it could result in sudden brake failure.

The Georgia injury lawyers at Finch McCranie, LLP have been representing injured victims of dangerous products for over 45 years. Many of these cases involved serious injury and some involved the wrongful death of the client. If you or a loved one have been injured by a dangerous and defective product of any kind, contact us for a free consultation at (800) 228-9159.

January 12, 2010

Dangerous Levels of Cadmium in Chinese Products

Children are being exposed to dangerous chemicals in toys and items manufactured in China. In recent years there have been numerous recalls of goods manufactured in China due alarming safety concerns. However, it seems the Chinese are continuing to flood the US market with dangerous and even deadly products.

Lab testing organized by The Associated Press revealed that cadmium is present in children's jewelry, sometimes at levels exceeding 90 percent of the item's total weight. Cadmium is a soft, whitish metal that occurs naturally in soil. It's perhaps best known as one half of rechargeable nickel-cadmium batteries, but also is used in pigments, electroplating and plastic.

Most people get a microscopic dose of the heavy metal just by breathing and eating. Plants, including tobacco, take up cadmium through their roots and people absorb it during digestion or inhalation. Without direct exposure, however, people usually don't experience its nasty side: cancer, kidneys that leak vital protein, bones that spontaneously snap.

Cadmium is particularly dangerous for children because growing bodies readily absorb substances, and cadmium accumulates in the kidneys for decades.

Upon receiving notice of the findings, the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission reacted swiftly and began an investigation into the presence of the toxic metal cadmium in children's jewelry imported from China.

The promise to take action as quickly as possible followed by hours the release Sunday of an Associated Press investigative report that documented how some Chinese manufacturers have been substituting cadmium for lead in cheap charm bracelets and pendants being sold throughout the United States including:

• Three flip flop bracelet charms sold at Walmart (contained between 84 and 86 percent cadmium)
• Two charms on a "Best Friends" bracelet bought at Claire's (consisted of 89 and 91 percent cadmium)
• Pendants from four "The Princess and The Frog" necklaces bought at Walmart (ranged between 25 and 35 percent cadmium)