BENTONVILLE, Ark. – A man who took part in a sleep study at Siloam Springs Memorial Hospital is suing the hospital for malpractice.
Dennis Ingram's lawsuit claims the hospital is to blame for his blindness and partial paralysis after he was given the drug Ambien when he had trouble falling asleep.
Ingram is asking for reimbursement for past and future medical expenses and compensation for pain, permanent injury, loss of enjoyment of life and other damages.
Hospital officials did not return phone calls seeking comment.
Blindness and paralysis are not side effects of Ambien, according to the company's Web site. The most common side effects are headache, somnolence, and dizziness.
More severe, but less common, side effects include sleepwalking, and eating or driving while not fully awake, memory loss, as well as abnormal behaviors such as being more outgoing or aggressive than normal, confusion, agitation, and hallucinations.
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