Articles Posted in Defective Products

Another woman has filed a defective medical device lawsuit against Boston Scientific for permanent injuries she says she sustained from the manufacturer’s vaginal mesh products. Shirley Shelmidine says she was inserted with the device to treat her urinary incontinence and ended up experiencing numerous complications, including debilitating pain and bleeding.

Shelmidine is one of many women to file a transvaginal mesh lawsuit. The medical device is supposed to treat stress urinary incontinence (SUI) and repair pelvic organ prolapse (POP), but the rate of reported complications has been disturbing-urinary issues, severe pain, infections, vaginal shortening, painful intercourse, and organ perforation. Removing the mesh implant can be very difficult and can create other serious side effects.

In her products liability complaint, Shelmidine contends that the mesh implant used on her had design defects and didn’t’ come with the proper warnings or instructions. She noted that Boston Scientific’s products have been linked to high complication and failure rates, don’t always work the way they are supposed to, often require the patient to undergo additional surgeries, and have been linked to irreversible, serious injuries. Her lawsuit alleges that the manufacturer’s pelvic mesh has been known to erode into other body parts, affect patient health, move out of the area where they were implanted, cause damage to the organs or tissues, and erode the patient’s health.

Boston Vaginal Mesh Lawsuits
In Massachusetts, you want to work with an experienced Boston injury lawyer that understands vaginal mesh products and their resulting complications and isn’t afraid to go after the manufacturer for the damages that you are owed.

Just last month, the New England of Journal Medicine published a study reporting that vaginal slings can lower the risk of urinary incontinence in women who undergo surgery for POP. However, the study also found that these women were at higher risk of suffering bleeding and bladder perforation.

A Midurethral Sling to Reduce Incontinence after Vaginal Prolapse Repair, The New England Journal of Medicine, June 21, 2012

More Blog Posts:
Another Transvaginal Mesh Lawsuit Filed Against Johnson & Johnson Over Serious Side Effects, Boston Injury Lawyers Blog, May 17, 2012

Vaginal Mesh Injuries Lead to Boston Defective Medical Device Lawsuits, Boston Injury Lawyers Blog, September 22, 2011
Boston Products Liability?: FDA Considering Tougher Review Process for Mesh Products, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, August 30, 2011 Continue reading

Johnson & Johnson has sent a letter to judges in West Virginia and New Jersey letting them know that it intends to stop selling the surgical mesh implants. However, J & J maintains that this decision is a result of “changing market dynamics” rather than “safety or efficacy” and that that the implants are safe for use. The manufacturer has been named in hundreds of products liability lawsuits by women claiming personal injuries.

In Massachusetts, our Boston injury lawyers are continuing to offer free case evaluations to women who have suffered serious injuries and other health complications after being implanted with a vaginal mesh device. Contact Altman & Altman LLP to ask for your free case evaluation.

It is J & J’s Ethicon division that will be discontinuing the sale of four kinds of mesh implants that are generally used to treat urinary incontinence:

A Malden, Massachusetts resident has filed a Boston injury lawsuit over the Salmonella Bareilly infection she says was caused by eating raw tuna. The woman is one of over 300 people whose food poisoning has been linked to the “Nakaochi Scrape” tuna. More than two dozen of the incidents are said to have occurred in this state. People in at least 26 states have been affected.

In her Boston food poisoning complaint, the plaintiff says that she fell ill two days after eating a spicy tuna role at Thelonious Monkfish, a Cambridge restaurant. The sushi contained the raw fish product that was made and sold by Moon Marine, who is the Massachusetts products liability lawsuit’s defendant. Her symptoms, including gastroenteritis, cramping, vomiting, and diarrhea, became so severe that she eventually sought medical care at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Since developing Salmonella Bareilly last month the plaintiff has had several stool samples, which continue to show her testing positive for the bacteria taken. As a result, she is still unable to legally go back to work.

Symptoms of Salmonella (these signs usually show up 12 to 72 hours after infection):
• Fever • Diarrhea • Abdominal cramps

Should serious complications arise, the infection may spread to the blood stream and other parts of the body and this can fatal. Pregnant women, elderly seniors, babies, and others with impaired immune systems are at higher risk of suffering serious health complications from Salmonella.

Food Poisoning
According to the US Department of Health and Human Services, one out of six persons will become afflicted with food poisoning each year. Spoiled food items or the contamination of the food during preparation and/or packaging can cause food poisoning.

Investigation of Multistate Outbreak of Salmonella Bareilly and Salmonella Nchanga Infections Associated with Nakaochi Scrape AA or AAA Frozen Raw Tuna from India, FDA, May 17, 2012

Salmonella, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

More Blog Posts:
Massachusetts Products Liability?: Sushi Outbreak in 21 States Causes Salmonella Poisoning, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, April 25, 2012
Boston Products Liability: Yaz Birth Control Pill May Cause Serious Side Effects and Health Complications, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, April 12, 2012
35 Pool Portable Deaths Involving Kids Under Age 5 Reported Every Year, Says CPSC, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, April 27, 2012 Continue reading

Another plaintiff is suing for personal injuries from a transvaginal mesh device. Stacey Pangborn claims she developed prolapse and incontinence and experienced serious pain in her pelvis, abdomen, and vagina after the device failed. The defendants of her defective medical device lawsuit are Johnson & Johnson and Ethicon.

If you are a woman in Massachusetts that has suffered health complications or injuries because of a transvaginal mesh device, our Boston injury lawyers want to hear from you. Already as far back as 2008, the Food And Drug Administration reported that it had received over 1,000 reports of adverse incidents involving transvaginal mesh procedures between 2005 and 2007 alone. Last year, the FDA issued an update that “serious complications” related to the procedure are “not rare” and the use of the mesh device to treat Pelvic Organ Prolapse or Stress Urinary Incontinence doesn’t appear to necessarily up the chances of a better outcome than if someone were to choose the more traditional procedures that don’t require a mesh implant.

The medical device is inserted in the pelvic area to provide support should a woman’s organs fall, drop, bulge, or protrude into the vaginal wall after childbirth or pregnancy, or from other reasons. Mesh can be also used to repair protrusions of the bladder, vagina, uterus, bowel, rectum, or urethra, as well as treat urinary incontinence.

The US Department of Health and Human Services has sent Allergan Inc. a subpoena requesting documents related to the Lap-Band System. This medical device, which has been approved to help people who are obese lose weight, has come under fire over reports that it has been involved in a number of patient deaths. There are lingering questions not only about the safety of this medical device but whether it has been poorly marketed to consumers.

In Massachusetts, if you believe that your injuries, health complications, or the death of a loved one were a result of a Lap-Band procedure gone awry, problems with the implant after its insertion, or having received inadequate information about the possible risks and complications involved from using this device, our Boston injury lawyers want to hear from you.

The lap band, which is inflatable, is surgically inserted into the stomach and can be loosened or tightened to either increase or reduce stomach capacity. Some of the problems linked to lap-bands:

• The lap band may slip from its designated placement in the stomach. If the band gets pushed down, this may create a barrier that can make it hard for food to pass through. Emergency surgery may be required.

• Lap band erosion. This may cause the body try to get rid of it. Surgery to remove the medical device may be necessary.

• Lap band breakage or deflation
• Port issues
• Other surgical or device complications
Earlier this year, Allergan announced that it would no longer sell the Lap-Band system to clinics affiliated with 1-800-GET-THIN, a marketing company that has gotten a lot of people interested in this device (especially in Southern California where so many people feel the pressure to be thin). 1-800-GET-THIN had been engaged in aggressive TV, Internet, radio, and billboard campaigns promoting the Lap-Band procedure as a great way to lose weight.

However, in the wake of the fatalities, the US Food and Drug Administration has taken action against 1-800-Get-Thin and eight surgical centers for allegedly misleading ads that failed to warn about potential side effects and other dangers. There also have been allegations from former employees of some of these surgical centers claiming that the Lap-Band procedure was performed on some patients who didn’t need it.

You may have a Boston products liability lawsuit on your hands.

Allergan Gets Subpoena From Government Over Lap-Band System, The Wall Street Journal, May 7, 2012

FDA issues Warning Letters for misleading advertising of Lap-Band, FDA, December 13, 2011

More Blog Posts:
New FDA Analysis Suggests Exercising Caution About Using Fosamax Long-Term, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, May 11, 2012

Pradaxa Lawsuit Claims Drug’s Side Effects Caused Woman to Bleed to Death, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, April 30, 2012

Another Boston Injury Lawsuit Blames DES Drug for Causing Newton Woman’s Breast Cancer, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, January 30, 2012 Continue reading