Sepsis After an Olympus Scope Procedure: Symptoms, Causes and Legal Options

Sepsis is a serious and potentially dire condition that can occur after you develop an infection. As your body fights the infection, it may begin to overreact. This overreaction can damage organs and healthy tissue.

Sepsis is considered a medical emergency. It is one of the leading causes of death in the United States, with a mortality rate of around 18%.

The symptoms of sepsis can vary significantly depending on the type of infection and from person to person. Some signs may include shallow breathing, chills and changes in mental status.

The Stages of Sepsis

Sepsis is divided into three stages:

• Sepsis
• Severe sepsis
• Septic shock

Sepsis is classified as severe when organ damage has occurred. Septic shock occurs when your blood pressure drops dangerously low.

Symptoms of septic shock include a rapid pulse, dizziness, lower-than-normal body temperature and rapid breathing.

It’s critical to receive immediate medical attention at any stage of sepsis.

Olympus scopes are a family of medical devices used in multiple diagnostic procedures, such as endoscopies and colonoscopies. The Japan-based company that produces them, Olympus Corporation, accounts for around 70% of the global scope market.

These scopes are flexible tubes with a light and a camera attached at the end. They are then inserted into the body during operations.

Olympus scopes are often reusable. They are expensive, highly specialized pieces of equipment that health care centers can’t discard after each procedure. So, the scopes undergo a strict sanitization protocol called reprocessing between uses.

However, concerns have arisen in recent years that design defects may have made the scopes difficult to clean properly, allowing some bacteria to remain.

The harmful bacteria may then enter another patient’s body during a procedure. This can lead to serious infections, including “superbugs” that are antibiotic-resistant and difficult to treat.

Some patients claim that they developed sepsis after a scope procedure that may have led to infection.

There are several signs to look for after a scope procedure that could signal sepsis. Because sepsis is your body’s response to an infection, the earliest signs may be those of infection.

This can include: 

• High fever
• Nausea and vomiting
• Severe pain in your chest or throat

Signs of sepsis can be more severe. They may include a rapid heart rate and difficulty breathing, along with your body temperature either climbing too high or dropping too low.

Confusion or changes in your mental state may also be a warning sign.

Remember that sepsis is a serious medical condition. Anyone experiencing symptoms should seek professional care immediately.

One of the primary concerns of Olympus scope contamination is the risk of superbugs. These infections are dangerous because they can cause serious complications and may be difficult to treat effectively.

Some types of superbug infections include: 

• C. diff (Clostridium difficile)
• CRE (Carbapenem-resistant Enterobacteriaceae)
• ESBL (Extended-spectrum beta-lactamases)
• MRSA (Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus)

CRE, in particular, has been linked to possibly contaminated scopes. There were severe outbreaks at multiple hospitals in the early 2010s that were later connected to duodenoscopes, a type of scope used to evaluate the liver, pancreas and bile ducts.

Patients and family members are now filing Olympus scope lawsuits over claims that they developed sepsis after a procedure. This includes colonoscopies, endoscopies, bronchoscopies and other similar procedures.

In 2025, the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) issued an import alert for dozens of Olympus scope models, preventing some of the company’s products from being imported into the United States.

This is not the first time that Olympus has faced lawsuits over infection concerns tied to its scope. The company was named as a defendant in numerous duodenoscope lawsuits in the 2010s over claims that the defective design of the scopes allowed bacteria and infections to spread among patients. 

Olympus was ordered to pay $6.6 million over these claims at the conclusion of a 2017 trial. The company still produces duodenoscopes today.

You may qualify to file a lawsuit if you had a procedure that used an Olympus scope and went on to develop sepsis.

People who have filed lawsuits claim that design defects prevented the scope used in their procedures from being properly cleaned, allowing harmful bacteria to enter their bodies, eventually leading to sepsis.

To qualify for a lawsuit, you or your family member typically must have developed sepsis within 30 days of the scope procedure. The procedure must also have taken place during or after 2015.

This litigation is relatively new. So far, there are no statute-of-limitations concerns. Even if your scope procedure was several years ago, you may still be eligible to file now.

Other Injuries Linked to Olympus Scope Procedures

Sepsis is not the only injury that has led people to file lawsuits. You may also qualify for a lawsuit if you experienced organ failure or had abscesses or tuberculosis. Families can file lawsuits if a loved one died after a scope procedure.

Lawyers are also investigating lawsuits from people who claim that they developed HIV after a scope procedure. Unlike the other conditions, you don’t need to have been diagnosed with HIV within 30 days of the procedure to qualify to file.