Drug Injury Lawyers Blog
Jurors have ordered Boston Scientific Corp. to pay Martha Salazar $73 million for injuries she sustained from the Obtryx sling, which is a vaginal mesh implant. This is the first defective medical device award against the company over its incontinence slings. (The Massachusetts-based device maker won the first two cases to go to trial over the Obtryx sling.) It is facing over 23,000 more transvaginal mesh implant lawsuits.
Salazar, 42, was implanted with the Obtryx sling in 2010 after she began to experience urinary leakage. She claims the medical device eroded in her body and that this has left her with constant pelvic pain and permanent nerve damage. Salazar also says that she cannot exercise, walk, or sit normally.
In her Obtryx sling lawsuit, Salazar accused Boston Scientific of designing and promoting a product that it was aware was flawed. The company has denied the allegations.
A jury, however, found Boston Scientific grossly negligent. It ordered the company to pay Salazar about $23 million in compensatory damages and $50 million in punitive damages. Her award is the largest mesh implant award to date.
Also this month, another jury awarded a woman $3.27 million for injuries she sustained while using an Ethicon mesh implant. Ethicon is a Johnson & Johnson unit. Jo Huskey said that the TVT-O mesh sling, used to treat incontinence, eroded insider her, requiring her to undergo surgery. That verdict comes five months after another jury ordered the company to pay plaintiff Linda Batiste $1.2 million in compensatory damages for her mesh injuries.
Also in April, American Medical Systems settled numerous transvaginal mesh lawsuits for $830 million. Among the other verdicts in favor of plaintiffs are two against Ethicon for $1.2 million and $11 million, respectively, and $2 million against manufacturer C.R. Bard.
Vaginal mesh injuries involving different mesh devices have included:
• Pelvic pain • Vaginal pain • Infection • Injury to the vaginal wall
• Urinary problems • Dyspareunia • Incontinence • Prolapse • Organ damage • Injuries to the bladder and bowel • Blood vessel perforation • Scarring • Vaginal disfigurement
Aside from the injuries that can arise, when a vaginal mesh product fails, a patient will usually have to undergo surgery, perhaps even multiple procedures, to remove the device-that is, if all of the device can even be taken out. As with all invasive medical procedures, these surgeries come with additional risks of complications, including infection.
You want to work with a Boston Obtryx Sling lawyer that understands the nature of your transvaginal mesh injury, as well as how the medical device contributed to your health issues. At Altman & Altman, LLP, we represent women who have been seriously injured because of faulty medical devices. We are here to help injured parties get the compensation they are owed for the harm they have suffered.
Boston Scientific ordered to pay $73 million over mesh device, Reuters, September 9, 2014
J&J Ordered to Pay $3.27 Million Over Mesh Implant, Bloomberg/Businessweek, September 5, 2014
More Blog Posts:
C.R. Bard, Boston Scientific Pelvic Mesh Cases Get Court Rulings, Drug Injury Lawyers Blog, August 26, 2014
Endo Health Solutions to Resolve Majority of Vaginal Mesh Lawsuits for $830M, Drug Injury Lawyers Blog, April 5, 2014
Vaginal Mesh Injuries Lead to Boston Defective Medical Device Lawsuits, Boston Injury Lawyer Blog, September 22, 2011
