When a doctor prescribes a medication or recommends a medical device, we naturally assume it is safe. Unless we are told otherwise, we don’t expect our doctor’s recommendation to make us sick or to cause us injury. But sometimes companies don’t tell us—or our doctors—about known risks.
If a medication or medical device has injured you, you have the right to demand accountability for your injury through a civil lawsuit. Hundreds—maybe even thousands—of others may have suffered similar or identical injuries from the same drug or medical device if a pharmaceutical company failed to conduct enough testing prior to putting a drug or device on the market, concealed the adverse effects of the medication device, or falsely advertised or marketed the drug or device.
Defective Medical Devices & Recalled Medical Products Harming Patients in Kentucky
Medical products and implants can also result in dangerous complications. Some of the defective medical device cases we handle include:
- Textured Breast Implants: Women who have received textured breast implants from Allergan, Mentor, or another manufacturer for breast augmentation or reconstruction face an increased risk of developing breast implant-associated anaplastic large cell lymphoma (BIA-ALCL). This is a rare type of non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma that can spread throughout the body if left untreated.
- DuPuy Synthesis Attune Knee Replacement Implant: Premature failure of this knee replacement implant may be linked to the metal-on-metal nature of the device, and is causing undue reconstructive surgeries, and unnecessary pain and suffering.
- Ethicon (Johnson & Johnson) Physiomesh Hernia Mesh: Used to repair ventral hernias, Physiomesh hernia mesh was recalled in May 2016 due to patients experiencing adhesions, recurrence of their hernias, and severe pain.
- Atrium C-QUR Hernia Mesh: Atrium’s C-QUR mesh has been used to repair hernias in various parts of the body. However, studies have shown the hernia mesh to cause side effects including pain, bowel adhesions, and chronic infections. More often than not, these conditions require surgery to repair or reduce the condition.
- Bard Davol Polypropylene Hernia Mesh: C.R. Bard is one of the largest makers of hernia mesh in the country, and its various polypropylene surgical mesh products, made by its Davol division, are used in many surgeries. Serious conditions such as adhesions, allergic reactions, perforation of organs, and other complications have been reported. People hurt by polypropylene may require additional surgeries.
- Inferior vena cava (IVC) filters: C.R. Bard Inc. has stopped manufacturing and selling several models of IVC filters, which are designed to strain clots from lower blood vessels before those clots can invade the lungs or brain. These devices have been associated with damage to blood vessels and internal organs, leading to serious and sometimes fatal complications.
- Stryker LFIT Anatomic CoCr V40 Femoral Heads: The FDA has recalled over 40,000 of these metal hip replacement components due to problems with corrosion. When severe, the corrosion of the metal components can result in total failure of the device, causing serious injuries and metal poisoning in patients.
- Essure: Essure is a non-surgical form of permanent birth control for women that has been linked to serious side effects, including severe bleeding and dangerous pregnancies.
- Transvaginal mesh: Transvaginal mesh (TVM) may be implanted if a woman experiences a drop, or prolapse, of organs and needs support. However, TVM has been linked to serious complications including mesh erosion, infection, significant pain, bleeding, organ perforation, and other problems.
- Mirena IUD: A Mirena IUD is an implanted form of birth control that may be convenient, but that may also have dangerous side effects that could endanger a woman’s fertility or her life. One serious side effect is pseudotumor cerebri—a neurological condition that can result in permanent brain damage, blindness, and other problems.
- Bair Hugger: This type of surgical blanket helps a patient maintain body temperature, but has also been linked to dangerous infections.
As with dangerous drugs, this list may expand at any time as new problems are reported.
Lawsuits for Prescription Drugs with Dangerous Side Effects
Some examples of dangerous drugs that have resulted in patient injuries or deaths include:
- Actemra: Actemra is a Rheumatoid Arthritis drug that has been linked to heart attacks, strokes, lung disease, gastrointestinal perforations, and death.
- Taxotere: This form of chemotherapy has been linked to permanent baldness or alopecia. Patients may not have known about this risk and may have made different treatment decisions if they knew about this potential side effect.
- Talcum powder: Studies indicate that Johnson & Johnson’s Baby Powder and other talcum-based powders may significantly raise a woman’s chances of developing ovarian cancer.
- Onglyza: Onglyza is used to treat people with Type 2 diabetes, but it has been linked to dangerous side effects such as an increased risk of heart attack and heart failure.
This list may expand at any time, as new dangerous medications are reported.
There Is Power in Numbers
If you’ve been hurt—or if you’ve lost a loved one—due to a dangerous drug or medical device, then you may consider a mass tort action. A mass tort action allows multiple injury victims to pool their resources and jointly sue the company that caused the injury. This saves both time and money.
A mass tort is not a class action. In a class action lawsuit, victims also file a joint lawsuit, but there is just one trial and all the victims share the settlement. In a mass tort, each injury victim receives his or her own separate trial and each victim is awarded an individual settlement.
There is power in numbers. A large company may downplay the claim of an individual. They may pay teams of lawyers to find the holes in the case. When hundreds of injury victims join together in a mass tort, they cannot be ignored. Big companies feel the pressure to settle.
You Are More Than a Number
No matter how many people suffered the same type of injury, your circumstances are unique. The attorneys at Gray and White Law care about your story, and we want to help you. Our Louisville attorneys will use our extensive experience to advocate on your behalf, so you get the full compensation you deserve.
Are you ready to learn if a Kentucky lawyer can help you after a drug or medical device injury? Contact Gray and White Law at 888-450-4456 today to schedule a free consultation.