Family Sues Over Boy's Tonsillectomy Fire

Danger of Oxygen and Breathing Tubes

ConMed, the maker of the device, warns in its operating manual never to perform electrosurgery in an oxygen rich environment. A company spokesman said in a written statement that the equipment was not defective.

"ConMed Corporation is one of numerous defendants that were sued by Andrew Garcia following an incident that occurred during a tonsillectomy procedure on April 18, 2003," the statement said. "This incident was investigated both by the California Department of Public Health and by the hospital where the event occurred and ConMed's equipment was found not defective. ConMed is defending itself vigorously in the lawsuit."

The company also filed a motion asking to bar the press from the trial, saying the media attention would prevent it from receiving a fair trial.

Millions of surgeries are performed each year. According to the ECRI Institute, most surgical fires are caused by electrosurgical equipment.

Dr. Peter Angood, chief patient safety officer at the Joint Commission, a nonprofit that accredits health care organizations, said that while it was impossible to know how many surgical fires take place each year, he thought the number had declined significantly in the last two decades.

Still, he said, it is important to lower the amount of oxygen to the safest amount possible and to make sure to use low voltage in electrical devices.