Product News and Recalls

Legal troubles for makers of vaginal mesh

In a blog entry for the Philadelphia Inquirer, writer David Sell points out that two makers of problematic medical devices called vaginal mesh implants recently suffered significant setbacks on the same day.

A jury in Atlantic City awarded $7.8 million in punitive damages to a former nurse who claimed that chronic pain forced her to stop working and obliged her to undergo 18 operations. In her lawsuit, she claimed her health problems started after she was implanted with a mesh device made by Johnson & Johnson’s Ethicon subsidiary.

Earlier in the week, the same jury had awarded her $3.5 million in compensatory damages.

And Endo Health Systems of Malvern, Pa., announced substantial losses on the same day. Those were due in part to a $640 million write down on the value of its American Medical Systems device division, which is focused on pelvic health problems including vaginal mesh implants.

The implants, used to treat urinary incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse, have generated widespread complaints of health problems including chronic pain, infection and organ perforation.

Sell writes that tens of thousands of lawsuits have been filed against multiple manufacturers of vaginal mesh implants in state and federal courts throughout the United States. Endo was facing more than 2,900 of the lawsuits as of last fall, and Johnson & Johnson faces about 1,800 more vaginal mesh lawsuits in New Jersey state courts alone.

If you have a vaginal mesh implant, you should consult with a doctor if you have any ongoing symptoms or health concerns. If you have significant injuries, you should also consult with a mesh lawyer to discuss your legal rights.

See the story here:

https://www.philly.com/philly/blogs/phillypharma/A-bad-day-for-vaginal-mesh-implants.html