Four women and/or their representatives in Missouri have agreed to settlements for their Ethicon Mesh lawsuits in state court. These lawsuits could be a harbinger of things to come with regards to the thousands of others that have been filed against Ethicon, which is an entity that is owned by Johnson & Johnson. As is typical with these situations, the specific terms of these Ethicon mesh settlements were not disclosed. These cases were not related to the tens of thousands of claims filed against Johnson & Johnson that are now consolidated on the federal court level. One of these settled claims was an Ethicon wrongful death lawsuit brought by the family of a woman who died from an infection allegedly caused by one of these vaginal mesh products.
About Ethicon Mesh Lawsuits
According to a report published recently by Philly.com, a link to which can be found here, Johnson & Johnson’s Ethicon unit faces more than 23,000 Ethicon mesh lawsuits that have been filed by consumers. These lawsuits generally contend that the company’s transvaginal mesh products did not work properly, and using them led to several different forms of harm that stem from the mesh products eroding in the pelvic area after being surgically implanted. This erosion and general failure led to the following types of suffering for consumers:
- Painful sexual intercourse
- Urinary problems
- Vaginal bleeding
- Vaginal pain
- Chronic vaginal damage
- Serious infections
Many women who faced these difficulties had to have these products surgically removed, leading to even more pain and suffering. In particular, those women whose tissue had grown around these mesh products faced debilitating pain and long recovery times.
About Transvaginal Mesh Lawsuits in General
Johnson & Johnson’s Ethicon unit is hardly the only company that faces lawsuits over transvaginal mesh products. According to public records, more than 75,000 individual transvaginal mesh lawsuits have been filed against different manufacturers by consumers. Other companies named as defendants in these lawsuits include:
- American Medical Systems (AMS)
- Boston Scientific
- C.R. Bard
- Cook Medical
- Coloplast Corp.
- Neomedic
Given the enormous number of individual claims filed, many have been consolidated so that the cases can be adjudicated more quickly.
About These Ethicon Mesh Settlements
As stated above, these four Ethicon Mesh lawsuits that have been settled are entirely separate claims from those that are currently active in the federal court system. There have already been several verdicts and settlements reached in favor of consumers who have been harmed by these products. Studies have been published that have indicated that there is a risk of harm for women who use transvaginal mesh products and the FDA has also issued warnings to the public with regards to them.
If you or someone you love has been injured as a result of using any of these products, you need to take steps to protect your legal rights as soon as possible. Contact the transvaginal mesh lawyers at Parilman & Associates today to schedule a free initial consultation. You can either email the firm or call 800-800-DRUG.
