About 10 years ago, you may recall news about a series of lawsuits against the manufacturers of transvaginal mesh. Women brought these lawsuits because of the serious complications they suffered from implanted mesh, resulting in an array of debilitating injuries. These injuries included erosion of the mesh within the vaginal canal or another organ, pain and discomfort, infection, and vaginal scarring. The manufacturers knew of these complications but failed to adequately warn women and physicians about the potential risks and complications of the devices.
While many of these lawsuits resolved several years ago, women today are still being injured from the implantation of mesh to treat pelvic organ prolapse (“POP”) and stress urinary incontinence (“SUI”). Thankfully, the FDA took some action in 2019 and ordered mesh manufacturers to stop selling mesh for the transvaginal repair of POP. However, transvaginal mesh is still used today to treat SUI. Additionally, mesh manufacturers developed the Y mesh, which is indicated to treat POP and is inserted abdominally instead of vaginally to comply with the FDA’s requirements. The Y mesh causes very similar injuries to the transvaginal mesh, like erosion, pain and discomfort, infection, and scarring. We also take Y mesh cases subject to our established criteria below. In sum, mesh is still regularly being implanted in women despite the unfortunate and devastating complications that can occur.
If you or someone you know has been injured by the implantation of a transvaginal mesh device, our firm might be able to help you get justice. We have strict criteria when evaluating these cases, which includes:
- The statute of limitations – The statute of limitations is a timeframe that dictates how long an individual is permitted to bring a lawsuit against a wrongdoer. The statute for products liability actions is set by each state. If a claim is outside of the relevant statute of limitations period, our firm will reject the case. Our firm will conduct a thorough statute of limitations assessment before signing any potential new matter.
- The statute of repose – The statute of repose is a timeframe that dictates how long an individual is permitted to bring a lawsuit against a wrongdoer based on the date of initial implantation of the mesh. Not every state recognizes a statute of repose for products liability actions, but many do. If a claim is outside of the relevant statute of repose period, our firm will reject the case. Our firm will conduct a thorough statute of repose assessment before signing any potential new matter.
- The manufacturer – Our firm will only take cases against the following manufacturers: 1) Johnson & Johnson/Ethicon; 2) Boston Scientific; and 3) Coloplast. That information can be identified through a product identification number attributed to each mesh implanted. Some individuals may know the manufacturer of their mesh off hand, while others may not. If you do not know the manufacturer of the mesh implant, we can order medical records to try and identify the manufacturer for you. We will sign cases with an unknown manufacturer, but we will later reject those cases if the mesh was not manufactured by Johnson & Johnson/Ethicon, Boston Scientific, or Coloplast.
Anapol Weiss has a strong track record of securing substantial verdicts for clients who have been injured by these devices. From 2015 to 2019, Anapol Weiss shareholder Kila Baldwin secured several substantial verdicts ranging from $12.5 million to $80 million for clients who sustained injuries due to defective transvaginal mesh implants. Our attorneys can help you understand your rights and options, and we will work tirelessly to ensure that you receive the compensation you deserve.
Click here to learn more about our transvaginal mesh litigation practice.