Boston Scientific Ordered To Pay $26.7 Million In Bladder Mesh Lawsuits After Injuries From Pelvic Mesh Implant Reports Wright & Schulte LLC
Columbus, OH (PRWEB) November 17, 2014 -- Wright & Schulte LLC reports that a federal court jury in Miami ordered Boston Scientific Corp. to pay a total of $26.7 million in compensatory damages to four women who filed bladder mesh lawsuits after they suffered injuries that included bleeding, pain, and infection due to the company’s Pinnacle transvaginal mesh implant. Bloomberg reported that jurors also found Boston Scientific's Pinnacle pelvic mesh device was defectively designed and the company failed to warn physicians and their patients about the risks associated with using the defective bladder mesh device. According to Bloomberg, the jury awarded more than $6.7 million to three women and the fourth woman was awarded more than $6.5 million. A spokesperson for Boston Scientific told Bloomberg that the company will attempt to overturn the jury’s decision on post-trial motions and on appeal. (14-cv-24061, U.S. District Court, Southern District of Florida)
[bloomberg.com/news/2014-11-14/boston-scientific-told-to-pay-26-7-million-in-mesh-case.html, November 14, 2014]
Bloomberg also reported that the eight-day bladder mesh trial is the first federal bellwether trial for Boston Scientific and the first trial that combined claims from four lawsuits. Boston Scientific is also defending itself in another bellwether trial that recently began in the U.S. District Court, Southern District of West Virginia over the company’s Obtryx bladder mesh sling. (2:12-cv-08633) Court documents in these bladder mesh lawsuits indicate a Texas state court jury ruled against Boston Scientific Corp. in September. The jury awarded $73 million to a woman who allegedly suffered permanent injuries from the Obtryx bladder mesh sling. (Case No. DC-1214349, District Court for Dallas County, 95th Judicial District of Texas (Dallas))
bloomberg.com/news/2014-11-14/boston-scientific-told-to-pay-26-7-million-in-mesh-case.html, November 14, 2014]
Transvaginal mesh devices support the bladder, bowel and uterus when they become so weak that they drop from their normal position and bulge (prolapse) into the vagina, according to the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA). The FDA issued warnings about vaginal mesh products in 2008 and 2011 after receiving complaints from women who suffered vaginal scarring, bleeding, shrinkage, pelvic pain and other complications after they had vaginal mesh implants. In 2011, Boston Scientific issued a recall for the Pinnacle Pelvic Floor Repair Kit. In April 2014, the FDA proposed reclassifying transvaginal mesh medical devices from “moderate risk” to “high risk.” This means that transvaginal mesh manufacturers will have to go through the same process as manufacturers of new devices that have not received FDA approval to sell their products in the United States. [fda.gov/MedicalDevices/ProductsandMedicalProcedures/ImplantsandProsthetics/UroGynSurgicalMesh/ucm262301.htm, April 29, 2014]
[accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfres/res.cfm?id=100416, August 3, 2011]
The attorneys at Wright & Schulte LLC note that Boston Scientific is one of seven transvaginal mesh manufacturers involved in multidistrict litigation in the U.S. District Court, Southern District of West Virginia. In February 2012, a federal judicial panel consolidated all transvaginal mesh lawsuits and transferred them to the West Virginia federal court where U.S. District Judge Joseph Goodwin is overseeing the litigation. There are 14,094 pelvic mesh lawsuits pending against Boston Scientific in the multidistrict litigation as of October 15, 2014. The bladder mesh lawsuits were filed on behalf of women who allege that they experienced pelvic pain, bleeding, shrinkage, vaginal scarring and other problems as a result of having a transvaginal mesh implant.
(In Re: Boston Scientific Corp., Pelvic Repair System Products Liability Litigation (MDL No. 2326)
[jpml.uscourts.gov/sites/jpml/files/Pending_MDL_Dockets_By_District-October-15-2014.pdf, October 15, 2014]
In its 2014 third quarter filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Boston Scientific noted that there were over 24,000 transvaginal mesh personal injury lawsuits pending against the company in state and federal courts in the United States, as of November 4, 2014. This number includes the pelvic mesh lawsuits pending in the MDL in the West Virginia federal court. The company also has less than 20 cases pending in Canada and 10 in the United Kingdom. According to the SEC report, over 2,500 of the vaginal mesh complaints have been assigned to one judge in (Middlesex County Superior) court in Massachusetts.
[sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/885725/000088572514000030/q32014form10q.htm, September 30, 2014]
About Wright & Schulte LLC
Wright & Schulte LLC, a defective medical device law firm, is dedicated to the belief that America’s legal system should work for the people. Every day, the attorneys of Wright & Schulte LLC stand up for the rights of people who have been injured or wronged by defective drugs and their side effects, complications from defective medical devices, and unsafe consumer products, and fight tirelessly to ensure that even the world’s most powerful corporations take responsibility for their actions. If you’re looking for a law firm that will guarantee the aggressive and personal representation you deserve, please do not hesitate to contact Wright & Schulte LLC today. Free transvaginal mesh case evaluations are available through yourlegalhelp.com, or call 1-800-399-0795.
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Wright & Schulte LLC
812 East National Road
Vandalia, Ohio 45377
1-800-399-0795
http://www.yourlegalhelp.com
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Richard Schulte, Wright & Schulte LLC, http://yourlegalhelp.com/, +1 1-800-399-0795, [email protected]
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