A patient in Georgia has filed a new hernia mesh repair lawsuit against makers of her Ethicon Physiomesh hernia mesh device. This hernia mesh repair lawsuit is set to join the Atlanta MDL for similar complaints.

Plaintiff Chantelle D. of Macon, Ga. is filing this lawsuit against both Ethicon, Inc. and Johnson & Johnson.

Chantelle was implanted with the Physiomesh device to repair her hernia on June 17, 2015, at The Medical Center, Navicent Health in Macon, Ga. Now she is filing this hernia mesh repair lawsuit on several counts including defective design, failure to warn, manufacturing defect, negligence, gross negligence and loss of consortium.

What is Hernia Mesh Repair?

Many individuals develop hernias during the course of their lives. A hernia is a rip or tear in the muscle wall, usually in the abdomen. Sometimes parts of an organ or intestines can be displaced through the hernia tear and dangerously protrude. Hernias sometimes resolve on their own, but more often, they must be repaired via a surgical procedure.

Hernia operations, in the past, involved a surgeon repairing the tear surgically without the aid of anything to strengthen the abdominal wall. Many times, the hernia would reappear later, requiring more surgery and a bringing about additional complications.

However, in recent years, surgeons often use a medical device known as hernia mesh to repair such a condition. In a hernia mesh repair surgery, a flexible, screen-like device is placed over the hernia to strengthen the muscle wall. It has been shown that those who opt for hernia mesh repair see less recurrence of their hernias.

Hernia Mesh in Surgery

Hernia mesh repair surgeries have their own set of complications, and patients have complained of a multitude of problems associated with hernia mesh. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) reports that the most common adverse events associated with all hernia surgeries include “pain, infection, hernia recurrence, scar-like tissue that sticks tissues together (adhesion), blockage of the large or small intestine (obstruction), bleeding, abnormal connection between organs, vessels, or intestines (fistula), fluid build-up at the surgical site (seroma), and a hole in neighboring tissues or organs (perforation).”

For those who are implanted with hernia mesh to repair their hernia, the FDA says that adverse events include infection, pain, hernia recurrence, bowel obstruction, organ perforation and adhesion. At times, the hernia mesh device can shrink or migrate.

In fact, the FDA reports, hernia mesh products that have been recalled have been the main cause of bowel perforation and bowel obstruction problems.

The Ethicon Physiomesh Flexible Composite Mesh device with which Chantelle was implanted for hernia mesh repair was approved by the FDA through a program that allows medical devices or drugs to be pushed through approval if it is “substantially equivalent” to another approved product. This is called a 510(k) approval process.

Many believe that because devices like this are not subject to rigorous tests and a strict approval process, companies like Ethicon should be held responsible for the adverse reactions of patients who use their product.

This Hernia Mesh Repair Lawsuit is Case No. 1:17-cv-md-02782-RWS in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, Atlanta Division.