How much of a threat is the credit-derivatives market?

The amount of credit-default swaps outstanding surged 37 percent to $62 trillion in the second half of 2007. That dwarfs the U.S. stock market capitalization, and means there are far more derivatives written on underlying debt than the debt itself. How much pressure is this putting on the banks and other institutions that trade these instruments? What could a problem in this market mean for my access to capital?