dennis quaid twins

Dennis Quaid's newborn twins serious after hospital blunder: report
15 hours ago

LOS ANGELES (AFP) ― Actor Dennis Quaid's newborn twins were in serious condition in a Los Angeles hospital on Tuesday after a blunder which saw them given massive overdoses of an anti-clotting agent, a report said.

Quaid's children -- Thomas Boone and Zoe Grace -- were in intensive care at Cedars Sinai Medical Center after being given a dose of the drug Heparin more than 1,000 times larger than the normal amount, website TMZ.com reported.

Heparin is used to flush out intravenous tubes and prevent blood clots. Babies typically receive 10 units of the drug but Quaid's children were given 10,000 units on Sunday before the alarm was raised, according to TMZ.com.

TMZ reported that as many as 13 patients received overdoses but in a statement later Tuesday, Cedars Sinai's chief medical officer Michael Langberg said only three patients were involved, without revealing their identities.

Langberg said additional tests and evaluation on the two patients most seriously affected had shown "no adverse effects from the higher concentration of Heparin ... Doctors continue to monitor the patients."

An investigation was underway and the hospital was "cooperating fully with the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services and will take all necessary steps to ensure that this never happens here again.

"This was a preventable error, involving a failure to follow our standard policies and procedures, and there is no excuse for that to occur at Cedars-Sinai."

Quaid's children were born to the actor and his third wife Kimberly Buffington by surrogate on November 8.

A statement issued by the family requested privacy. "Dennis and Kimberly appreciate everyone's thoughts and prayers and hope they can maintain their privacy during this difficult time," it said.

Quaid, 53, is best known for roles in a string of hit films during the 1980s including "The Right Stuff", "Enemy Mine" and "Innerspace". He also won acclaim for playing Jerry Lee Lewis in 1989's "Great Balls of Fire!"

Quaid's career faltered during the early 1990s as he battled drug addiction but he still appeared in several successcul films throughout the next decade, most notably "Wyatt Earp" in 1994 and 2000's "Traffic".
California health regulators are investigating reports that a Los Angeles hospital gave an extremely high dosage of a blood thinner to newborn twins, reportedly the children of Dennis Quaid and his wife.

The celebrity Web site TMZ.com said the actor's children, Thomas Boone and Zoe Grace, were given vials of heparin, used to prevent clotting.

However, the vials allegedly contained a concentration of 10,000 units per milliliter instead of from vials containing a concentration of 10 units per milliliter -- 1,000 times stronger than what was prescribed.


Citing unnamed sources, the site said the children were in Cedars-Sinai Medical Center's neonatal intensive care unit. Quaid and Kimberly Buffington were married in 2004. They are the biological parents of the twins, who were born Nov. 8 to a surrogate mother.

A state Health Department spokeswoman said the department was investigating reports of an incident involving newborn twins at the hospital. She wouldn't elaborate.

In a statement, Quaid's publicist said, "Dennis and Kimberly appreciate everyone's thoughts and prayers and hope they can maintain their privacy during this difficult time."

Although he didn't identify any patients, Cedars Sinai Chief Medical Officer Michael L. Langberg, MD, apologized for the alleged incident in a statement.

"I want to extend my deepest apologies to the families who were affected by this situation, and we will continue to work with them on any concerns or questions they may have," Langberg said. "This was a preventable error, involving a failure to follow our standard policies and procedures."

Langberg noted that the patients did not suffer any "adverse effects" from the overdose.


Previous Stories: LOS ANGELES (AP) - The newborn twins of Dennis Quaid and his wife, Kimberly, were reportedly given an accidental overdose of blood thinner at a hospital.

The celebrity Web site TMZ.com said the actor's children, Thomas Boone and Zoe Grace, were given vials of heparin, used to prevent clotting, that were 1,000 times stronger than what was prescribed. Citing unidentified sources, the site said the children were in Cedars-Sinai Medical Center's neonatal intensive care unit.

The hospital apologized Tuesday to the families of three patients involved, but said it could not release the names because of confidentiality laws. It said tests indicated that there were no adverse effects on the patients.

In a statement, Quaid's publicist, Cara Tripicchio, said, "Dennis and Kimberly appreciate everyone's thoughts and prayers and hope they can maintain their privacy during this difficult time."

Suanne Buggy, a state Department of Public Health spokeswoman, said the agency is investigating reports of an incident involving newborn twins at the hospital. She did not elaborate.

Cedars-Sinai's chief medical officer, Michael L. Langberg, said in a statement that on Sunday three patients each received vials containing 10,000 units per milliliter of heparin instead of vials with a concentration of 10 units per milliliter.

Once the hospital staff realized the "preventable error," they did tests to measure the patients' blood clotting function, Langberg said Tuesday. One patient's test was normal, but two patients required a drug that reverses the effects of heparin, he said.

Further tests on the two "indicated no adverse effects from the higher concentration of heparin," Langberg said. "Doctors continue to monitor the patients."

"I want to extend my deepest apologies to the families who were affected by this situation," Langberg said.

Quaid and his wife are the biological parents of the twins, who were born Nov. 8 to a surrogate mother.

"God has definitely blessed us," the couple said in a statement announcing their birth.

Quaid, 53, has a 15-year-old son, Jack Henry Quaid, from his marriage to Meg Ryan.

His screen credits include "Great Balls of Fire!" "Any Given Sunday" "The Big Easy" and "Far From Heaven."