Mesh failures
Women across the country are experiencing problems after getting transvaginal mesh implants to treat pelvic organ prolapse and urinary incontinence, only to find themselves dealing with debilitating pain and potentially life-threatening injuries.
Recent reports indicate that manufacturers of these implants marketed them before getting federal approval, and continued to market them without warning consumers even after the reports of problems started pouring in. Worse, many medical experts say the implants probably weren’t necessary in the first place.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently announced that it’s received more than 4,000 reports of the implants malfunctioning – and the patients who received them frequently suffering injury or death — between 2005 and 2010. In many cases, additional surgery was required. One study showed that the devices eroded in approximately 10 percent of the patients who received them within 12 months of implantation.
The most common complication from transvaginal mesh implant is vaginal mesh erosion, also known as exposure, extrusion or protrusion. This can result in severe pain, infection, urinary problems, bleeding, and organ perforation. They’ve also been reported to cause muscular problems, vaginal scarring and mesh contraction, which brings on a host of problems.
Numerous lawsuits have been filed over these complications, in part because studies show no benefit over non-mesh repair. And after patients suffer through the complications from mesh erosion, the incontinence and organ prolapse that the implant was supposed to fix in the first place frequently return.
One of the reasons is that mesh implant manufacturers took advantage of a loophole in the federal approval process that allows medical devices to go on the market without being safety tested in humans. Now thousands of innocent medical consumers are paying the price.
If you had a mesh implant and suffered one of the above symptoms, contact Lopez McHugh to discuss your options for pursuing compensation, or have your questions answered by a qualified attorney, with no obligation.
We have female attorneys standing by, available to discuss your specific situation and answer any legal questions you may have. Your initial consultation is free and there is no obligation. Call today because if you wait too long, you may be barred from recovering for your injuries by your state’s time limits.
