Some things to consider:
1-don't disconnect any hardware without ejecting it first(this goes for an interface, USB memory sticks, external hard drives, etc)
2-don't disconnect the interface with things powered up(shut down before you pull the USB from the FT)
3-why are you disconnecting?(you don't really need to answer this one, but do you REALLY need to keep unplugging?
4-Not what you want to hear but M-Audio interfaces just aren't very good(my 2 cents) so have you considered a better interface?(some other brands do much better drivers for their hardware)
5-is your desktop running Windows 8? If so, I would move to Windows 10 if(and ONLY IF) your version of Pro Tools is compatible with Win10
