Did you or a loved one suffer a severe infection, sepsis, or organ damage after a procedure involving an Olympus endoscope or duodenoscope? You may be entitled to significant financial compensation.
Between 2013 and 2024, contaminated Olympus duodenoscopes and endoscopes infected hundreds of patients at hospitals across the United States. At least 35 people died. These patients entered hospitals for routine diagnostic procedures — gallstone evaluations, colonoscopies, pancreatic biopsies — and left with life-threatening infections caused by drug-resistant bacteria that most antibiotics cannot treat.
This was not a cleaning error by hospital staff. According to lawsuits and FDA findings, the problem is a fundamental design flaw in the scopes themselves. The complex “elevator mechanism” at the tip of Olympus duodenoscopes contains microscopic crevices, O-rings, and moving parts that make it physically impossible for standard disinfectants and brushes to reach every contaminated surface. Bacteria survive sterilization, form protective biofilms inside the device, and transfer directly into the next patient’s bile ducts and bloodstream.
Olympus controls roughly 85% of the global market for gastrointestinal endoscopes. Internal documents produced in litigation suggest the company’s engineers and executives understood the scope of the contamination problem for years but delayed corrective action due to the financial and reputational costs of a recall or redesign. In 2018, Olympus pleaded guilty to federal charges for failing to file required adverse event reports and paid $85 million in fines.
Phillips Law Group is currently reviewing cases for individuals nationwide who underwent a qualifying procedure using an Olympus device in 2015 or later and suffered a serious infection or injury. Call (602) 222-2222 for a free, no-obligation case evaluation.
To determine if you have a valid claim against Olympus, our legal team evaluates the following factors:
You must have undergone one of the following procedures using an Olympus scope:
The core of these lawsuits centers around severe, life-altering infections and physical damage caused by contaminated or defective Olympus scopes:
| Category | Qualifying Condition |
|---|---|
| Bacterial Infection | Bacterial infection requiring hospitalization within 90 days of the scoping procedure |
| Superbug / Drug-Resistant Infection | Diagnosis of CRE, VRE, drug-resistant E. coli, or similar superbug within 180 days of scoping |
| Sepsis / Bacteremia | Development of sepsis or bacteremia following the procedure |
| Pneumonia / Pulmonary | Pneumonia, severe pulmonary infection, or Tuberculosis within 90 days of scoping |
| HIV / Other Infection | HIV diagnosis or other medically significant infection within 90 days of scoping |
| Organ / Tissue Damage | Perforation or damage during the procedure due to device dislodging, or internal fire/burning caused by the device |
| Device Breakage | Dislodging or breaking of the endoscopic device or component that caused injury or required retrieval surgery |
| Hemorrhaging / Death | Qualifying hemorrhaging following the procedure, or death from infection or component failure |
Important: Medical records will be needed to verify that your procedure utilized an Olympus endoscope or endoscopic component. If you received a notification letter from your medical provider or from Olympus about potential device failure or contamination, please keep it — it is valuable evidence for your case.
Think you may qualify? Get answers from an experienced legal team today.
Federal regulators have taken repeated action against Olympus over the past several years. Below is a summary of the most significant events:
| Date | Action |
|---|---|
| Dec 2018 | Olympus Medical Systems pleaded guilty to federal charges for failing to report adverse events. Fined $85 million by the DOJ. |
| Nov 2022 | FDA issued a warning letter to Olympus subsidiary Aizu Olympus Co., Ltd. for quality system violations at its Japan manufacturing facility. |
| Jun 2023 | FDA Class 1 recall for certain Olympus bronchoscopes due to risk of airway fire and internal burns during laser procedures. |
| Dec 2024 | FDA Class 1 recall of the Olympus MAJ-891 Forceps/Irrigation Plug — linked to 120 infection injuries and one death. |
| Jun 2025 | FDA issued import alerts blocking 58 Olympus products manufactured at the Aizu facility in Japan from entering the U.S. |
| Sep 2025 | FDA Class 1 recall of the ViziShot 2 FLEX aspiration needle — linked to 40 injuries and one death due to a design flaw causing lung damage. |
| Oct 2025 | Olympus issued an urgent field safety notice for the TJF-Q190V duodenoscope, linked to two infection-related deaths and five serious injuries. |
Despite years of warnings, recalls, and federal penalties, many patients have already suffered irreversible harm. Filing a lawsuit is one of the most direct ways to hold Olympus accountable for these alleged design defects and failures to warn patients and hospitals.
Corporate medical device manufacturers like Olympus have enormous legal and financial resources. To go up against them, you need a law firm with a proven record in complex product liability and mass tort litigation. Phillips Law Group has secured more than $810 million in total recoveries for our clients across all practice areas.
We handle Olympus endoscope cases on a contingency fee basis. That means you pay nothing unless we win your case. We advance all costs associated with investigating and prosecuting your claim. If we do not recover compensation for you, you owe us nothing.
This lawsuit is national in scope. No matter where you are in the United States, if you or a family member suffered a serious infection or injury after a procedure involving an Olympus scope, our team is ready to review your case.
Ready to find out if you have a case? Talk to our team today.
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