Amanda Antell  |  October 5, 2015

Category: Legal News

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GranuFlo Cardiac Arrest LawsuitA North Carolina man has is suing Cook Medical Inc. for allegedly causing him to suffer major injuries, after having their inferior vena cave (IVC) filter device implanted.

Plaintiff Ronaldo S. has filed this IVC filter lawsuit claiming that the Cook Celect Vena Cava Filter caused him to suffer injuries that could have been otherwise avoided.

Ronaldo had the Cook Celect IVC filter device implanted on June 9, 2009 to relieve his risk of a cardiovascular attack with the intention of having it removed soon after the blood clots resolved themselves. Unfortunately, Ronaldo experienced IVC filter complications soon after having the device implanted.

According to the IVC Filter lawsuit, Ronaldo alleges that Cook Medical failed to provide him or his physician any disclosure of possible IVC filter complications, nor did the defendant provide any relevant studies.

Ronaldo insists that he never would have agreed to have the IVC filter implanted, if he knew of the potential risks.

So for being allegedly responsible for manufacturing, selling, distributing, and marketing a dangerous product, Ronaldo is suing Cook Medical. The charges include negligence, false advertising, concealing information, and misrepresenting a product.

About IVC Filters

IVC filters are small, cage-like device that implanted in the inferior vena cave vein in order to trap and resolve blood clots. The device works by stopping blood clots from traveling up to the heart or lungs, thus preventing a pulmonary embolism.

Originally, there were only permanent IVC filters that were meant to be implanted in high risk patients, but temporary models were recently released and have quickly gained popularity. However, these temporary models have been allegedly causing major problems for reportedly being improperly made, and overall inferior to the permanent models.

Patients have reported these device either breaking apart and causing additional problems for their heart and lungs, or have caused additional blood clot injuries that the device was supposed to prevent in the first place.

Overview of IVC Filter Complications

Amongst the most common complaints among patients, include the IVC filter device breaking apart and causing chest pain, difficulty breathing, and pulmonary embolism.

In 2010, the FDA stated that they had received 921 IVC filter adverse event reports since 2005, wit 328 of the reports involving filter migration, 146 of inferior vena cava filter detachment, 70 IVC perforation, and 56 IVC filter fracture.

The FDA stated that these IVC filter complications stemmed from the temporary IVC filters staying inside the patient, for long periods of time. The FDA stated that the temporary models should be removed soon after the blood clots are resolved, in order to prevent IVC filter injury.

Furthermore, the agency stated that physicians should evaluate the risk of these devices, to determine if an IVC filter is the appropriate action for the patient in question.

In a more recent warning regarding IVC filters in May 2014, the FDA stated that the temporary IVC filters should be removed between 29 to 54 days after implantation.

However, this information was allegedly not available to Ronaldo or any other IVC filter patients at the times they agreed to have the device implemented.

The IVC filter lawsuit is filed In Re: Cook Medical, Inc. IVC Filters Marketing, Sales Practices And Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2570, in the U.S. District Court of Southern Indiana, Indianapolis Division.

In general, IVC filter lawsuits are filed individually by each plaintiff and are not class actions.

Do YOU have a legal claim? Fill out the form on this page now for a free, immediate, and confidential case evaluation. The attorneys who work with Top Class Actions will contact you if you qualify to let you know if an individual lawsuit or class action lawsuit is best for you. Hurry — statutes of limitations may apply.

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If you or a loved one were injured by IVC filter complications, you may have a legal claim. See if you qualify to pursue compensation and join a free IVC filter class action lawsuit investigation by submitting your information for a free case evaluation.

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