Ind. Girl in Peanut Butter Lawsuit Receives Kidney from Dad

An 11-year-old girl whose family says she became ill after eating peanut butter contaminated with salmonella received a kidney donated by her father on Monday (June 18).

Krystina Brugh and her father, John Brugh Jr., were both doing well after more than four hours of surgery at University of Illinois Medical Center at Chicago, hospital spokeswoman Sherri McGinnis Gonzalez said.

“Everything went well, as expected,” she said. “The father and the daughter are both recovering and doing well and her kidney is functioning. That is the best news.”

The Lowell, Ind., family’s attorney, Kenneth Allen, said Krystina remained in intensive care several hours after the surgery.

“It appears at this time that his kidney is not being rejected by her, but we have to hold our breath for about 48 hours to see whether the rejection antibodies form,” Allen said. “It looks like this will have a relatively happy ending except she’s still going to have to take medication for the rest of her life.”

Krystina’s parents last week filed a federal lawsuit in Hammond, Ind., seeking unspecified damages against foodmaker ConAgra Foods Inc.

Omaha, Neb.-based ConAgra recalled all its peanut butter made at its Sylvester, Ga., plant in February after government investigators linked an outbreak of salmonella to the company’s Peter Pan and Great Value brands. More than 600 people in 47 states reported becoming ill, and the company faces lawsuits in several states.