A woman filed a federal lawsuit Thursday claiming she suffered injury after using a contaminated disinfectant wipe that was later recalled because of bacteria.
Nutek Disposables issued a nationwide voluntary product recall of a batch of its baby wipes because some packages contained bacteria. Nutek announced the recall on Oct. 27 for baby wipes manufactured under the brand names Cuties, Diapers.com, Femtex, Fred’s, Kidgets, Member’s Mark, Simply Right, Sunny Smiles, Tender Touch, and Well Beginnings.
Shimeka Rogers purchased the Kidgets brand wipes from various Family Dollar stores in Chicago, according to the suit. She later suffered an unspecified injury as a result of using the wipes, the suit claims.
The suit claims that “no reasonable consumer would purchase a baby wipe knowing that it causes infection.” Rogers used the wipes about once every two weeks for the past year, the suit said.
In announcing the recall, Nutek said numerous consumers complained about rashes, irritation, infections, fever, gastro-intestinal issues and respiratory problems after using the wipes.
Nutek conducted microbial testing that showed the presence of a bacteria called Burkholderia cepacia, the suit said.
“B. cepacia poses little medical risk to healthy people,” the company said in a statement. “However, people who have certain health problems like weakened immune systems or chronic lung disease, particularly cystic fibrosis, may be more susceptible to infections with B. cepacia.”
The five-count suit lists Family Dollar and Nutek as defendants, seeks class-action status and at least $5 million in damages plus legal fees.