Transvaginal mesh, once thought to be an exciting, life-altering solution to medical problems common to a great many women, has now become known as a defective product for which its manufacturers are legally liable. Myriad women have been severely harmed, physically and emotionally, not to mention financially, by the implantation of transvaginal mesh. If you are one of these women, you should consult with the experienced transvaginal mesh injury attorneys at Nagel Rice LLP. From our offices in Manhattan and Roseland, New Jersey, we are prepared to fight with skill and determination for your rights to just compensation for your physical injuries, pain and suffering, and lost income. We understand the sensitivity of this particular product liability case and will always treat you with the respect and compassion you deserve.
The History of Transvaginal Mesh and the Controversy Surrounding Its Use
A large number of women develop symptoms of pelvic organ prolapse (POP) and stress urinary incontinence (SUI) as they age, particularly after vaginal childbirth. The symptoms of these two conditions are difficult to live with, so medical scientists began searching for a means to repair these problems. In the 1970s a new product, known as transvaginal mesh (aka pelvic sling or bladder mesh) was produced and began to be used to repair pelvic organ prolapse.
At first, transvaginal mesh was thought to be a relatively simple answer to the painful and distressing symptoms so many women were experiencing. By the 1990s, the use of the medical product expanded and the transvaginal mesh was also used to treat stress urinary incontinence as well. Tragically, however, the more transvaginal mesh was used, the more complications began to show up in patients who had had the mesh implanted.
By 2010, in an article in the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology, researchers reported that they had to stop a vaginal mesh clinical trial early because of the high number of complications and injuries that were affecting participating patients. More than 15 percent of women in the trial suffered vaginal mesh erosion within only 3 months of the implantation procedure. A year later, the FDA and the Committee on Gynecologic Practice separately recommended that transvaginal mesh only be used only in extreme cases.
In spite of the fact that, as of this writing, the FDA has not recalled all kinds of transvaginal mesh, thousands of patients and their doctors have reported serious harm, including multiple deaths, caused by various types of the product. Tens of thousands of lawsuits have been filed against various manufacturers of transvaginal mesh, including Johnson & Johnson, C.R. Bard, Boston Scientific, and American Medical Systems. While some of these lawsuits have already been settled for substantial amounts, many others are still pending in federal, state, and local courts.
Medical Reasons for Implantation of Transvaginal Mesh
Surgical implantation of transvaginal mesh has been used to treat pelvic organ prolapse, a condition that can lead to many painful symptoms. In patients with POP, the bladder, uterus, rectum, and/or small intestine may press against the vaginal wall, weakening it further and further. The weakness of the vaginal wall can result in a variety of unpleasant symptoms, including stress incontinence (losing urine when you laugh, cough, sneeze or push hard) and painful sexual intercourse. The transvaginal mesh is used to reinforce the weakened vaginal wall and may be surgically implanted through the abdomen (transabdominally) or through the vagina (transvaginally).
How Nagel Rice Can Help
Unfortunately, far too many women experience far worse symptoms after transvaginal mesh implantation than they did before the supposedly reparative procedure. If you are suffering after going through the implantation process, you should consult with your obstetrician/gynecologist promptly and begin documenting your postsurgical symptoms in as much detail as possible. While you are handling the medical aspects of your difficulties, come to Nagel Rice and allow us to take over the legal aspects of your case. We are professional, knowledgeable, and efficient and will leverage our negotiation and litigation skills against the manufacturer’s legal team. Once our transvaginal mesh injury attorneys determine that you have a viable case, we will prepare a winning strategy to prove product liability on the part of the manufacturer whose product has brought you so much misery. Remember, at Nagel Rice LLP, we try cases and we produce results.
Symptoms of Transvaginal Mesh Failure
The failure of transvaginal mesh to function as promised is well-documented. The mesh, designed to support the prolapsing pelvic organs and tissues, either erodes or cuts into the delicate tissues around it. The symptoms patients experience as a result of mesh defects may include:
- Chronic vaginal, bladder, or kidney infections
- Lifelong incontinence
- Unusual bleeding
- Atypical vaginal discharge
- Excruciating pain during sexual intercourse
- Inability to engage in sexual intercourse
- Vaginal shrinkage due to mesh contraction
- Chronic pain due to nerve or organ damage
- Abdominal pain, swelling, inflammation
In the most egregious cases, symptoms may be life-threatening. These symptoms, such as perforation of the bladder, intestines, bowels, or of the blood vessels in and around the vaginal wall, may require emergency repair surgeries. At times, such surgeries are not performed in time to save the patient’s life. If you have lost a loved one due to transvaginal mesh that punctured an organ or blood vessel or caused an uncontrollable infection, Nagel Rice’s attorneys will work strenuously to win you compensation for the wrongful death.
Nagel Rice, LLP Can Win Just Compensation for Your Transvaginal Mesh Injury Claim
If having transvaginal mesh implanted has, far from being a remedy for your medical problems, resulted in worsening symptoms, disabling conditions, chronic pain and/or further surgery, you most likely have a strong product liability case against the manufacturer. Nagel Rice transvaginal mesh injury attorneys have the tactical skills to win you significant compensation for your medical, surgical and rehabilitative costs, lost income, physical pain, emotional anguish, and loss of consortium. We are committed to supporting you through the trauma you continue to experience and to reduce, as much as possible, the stress of going through the legal process necessary to recover every dollar of the damages you deserve. We have won millions of dollars for our clients over the years and we want to win your case, too. Contact us by phone, through email, or by filling out a form on our website.
Nagel Rice LLP helps their clients with their transvaginal mesh injury claims throughout New Jersey including Bergen County, Essex County, Middlesex County, Monmouth County, Morris County, Passaic County, and Sussex County.