Hernia Mesh Lawsuits
(Surgical Mesh Implants)
Problem summary
The use of flexible, synthetic mesh implants to repair abdominal hernias has been a popular surgical solution for many years. However, the safety of hernia mesh has been called into question over the past decade or more, amid reports of patients implanted with the mesh devices suffering infection, migration, bowel obstruction, organ damage and other complications allegedly caused by design defects that allow the mesh to move around and shrink inside of the body. Manufacturing companies selling hernia mesh devices have a duty to patients and the medical community to ensure that their products are safe before making them available to the public, and when this duty is violated, legal action must be taken. Contact an experienced product liability lawyer today for more information about filing a hernia mesh injury lawsuit.
About Hernia Mesh
Hernia mesh is a type of flexible surgical mesh used to repair abdominal hernias, which occur when the intestines bulge through a weak spot in the abdominal wall. Surgical mesh has been shown in the past to have a higher success rate than alternative methods of hernia repair, which is why many doctors prefer mesh reinforcement to stitching when repairing abdominal hernias. However, a growing body of research suggests that hernia mesh devices are failing at a higher-than-expected rate, and adverse event reports filed in recent years have linked hernia mesh devices to a host of potentially life-altering side effects, including chronic pain, infection, organ damage and other complications possibly requiring revision surgeries.
The first hernia mesh device was approved by the FDA in the early 2000s, and it wasn’t long after, that patients implanted with the mesh began complaining of side effects and the safety of hernia mesh was called into question. Between 2005 and 2007, mesh manufacturer C.R. Bard issued multiple recalls affecting its Kugel Mesh device due to the potential for the mesh to cause bowel tears, and over the next ten years, many other manufacturers followed suit. In 2016, Johnson & Johnson recalled its Ethicon Physiomesh Composite Mesh after two studies showed a higher rate of hernia recurrence and revision surgery in patients implanted with the mesh. And in April 2018, the FDA announced a recall of Versatex Monofilament Mesh after the manufacturing company, Medtronic, reported a high rate of abdominal hernia recurrence following hernia repair with the device.
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Hernia Mesh Complications & Injuries
- Severe pain
- Infection
- Bowel obstruction
- Migration (the mesh moves from where it was implanted)
- Adhesions (the mesh adheres to internal tissue)
- Perforation of organs and tissues
- Mesh failure
- Seromas (pockets of fluid) requiring surgery
- Mesh shrinkage
- Sepsis
- Mesh erosion
- Hernia recurrence
- Organ damage
- Internal fistulas (abnormal connections between parts inside the body)
- Abdominal abscess formation
- Autoimmune disorders
- Revision surgery
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Hernia Mesh Resources and Recalls
R. Bard $184 Million Hernia Mesh Settlement Agreement
Class 2 Device Recall of Atrium C-Qur Mesh
Permanent Injunction Issued Against Atrium Medical Corporation
2018 Versatex Monofilament Mesh Recall
Urgent Notice Announcing Recall of Ethicon Physiomesh Flexible Composite Mesh
FDA Information About Hernia Surgical Mesh Implants
Mesh Clinical Trial Terminated Due to a High Rate of Hernia Recurrence
$35 Million Verdict in Lawsuit Involving Ethicon’s Prolift Mesh Implant
Hernia Mesh Settlements & Litigation
As of February 2018, more than 54,000 hernia mesh lawsuits are pending in state and federal courts across the country, brought on behalf of individuals who suffered complications from hernia mesh devices, and attorneys investigating claims of hernia mesh side effects expect the litigation to continue to grow. The Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPML) established, in December 2016, a consolidated multidistrict litigation (MDL) for Atrium C-Qur mesh lawsuits, and in June 2017, a consolidated MDL for Ethicon Physiomesh lawsuits. All of the hernia mesh lawsuits filed against Ethicon and other mesh manufacturing companies involve similar allegations that the mesh devices have design defects that put patients at unnecessary risk for severe internal injuries and other complications.
Patients implanted with hernia mesh devices who have suffered devastating side effects as a result of mesh failure and other complications may be entitled to financial compensation for medical bills, past and future wages, loss of future earning capacity, pain and suffering, and other losses. As lawsuits continue to be filed over alleged hernia mesh injuries, the resulting verdicts and settlements continue to favor the plaintiffs. In August 2010, for example, a jury awarded $1.5 million in damages to the plaintiffs in the second hernia mesh case to go to trial. The following year, mesh manufacturer C.R. Bard announced that it would settle as many as 2,600 hernia mesh lawsuits for a total of $184 million. In 2014, C.R. Bard subsidiary, Davol, agreed to a $1.375 million settlement over class action lawsuits involving its Kugel Patch, and in 2018, Ethicon was hit with a $35 million verdict in a lawsuit filed over the defective design of its Prolift surgical mesh.
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