More and more patients are bringing forward their own Essure injury cases, claiming that the popular birth control device has been the cause of a slew of serious complications.

Lawsuits have been filed against the device’s manufacturer, Bayer Healthcare, and more continue to be filed alleging that Bayer knew about these potential side effects, but failed to give adequate warning to the public and the medical community, leading to the growing number of Essure injury cases.

Basics of the Essure Device

Essure is a popular form of permanent birth control from Bayer Healthcare, designed as an alternative to undergoing surgery for tubal ligation. Being less invasive, the device is quite popular.

Essure was only approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2002, but close to 750,000 patients have already been implanted with the Essure device.

Essure consists of two metal coils, which are implanted in a woman’s fallopian tubes. This is done during a simple outpatient procedure. Essure is advertised as an easy option, in part due to the simple implantation procedure that can be done in a doctors’ office without invasive surgery, incision, or anesthesia.

In the months following this initial procedure, the coils must be allowed to expand in place in order to become effective. The surrounding tissue grows inward around the coils as they grow outward, which is meant to completely block the fallopian tubes to prevent pregnancy.

Though Bayer Healthcare markets its Essure device as a safe and effective form of birth control, lawsuits claim that there have actually been a number of serious Essure injury cases with device side effects.

Essure Injury Cases

While side effects should be expected from any medication or medical device, many patients who were implanted with Essure have come forward with their own Essure injury cases, allleging  the complications they suffered are more harmful than reasonable expectations allow. Indeed, thousands of women have reported Essure injury cases since the device’s approval in 2002. To date over 5,000 reports of Essure injury cases have been filed with the FDA, the agency reports.

Many Essure side effects have been fairly minor, and include complications like headaches, dizziness, vomiting, cramps, abdominal or back pain, fatigue, weight fluctuation, and pain during sex. However, the birth control device has also been linked with a few major Essure injury cases, which may include failure of the implant, device migration, organ perforation, device fracture, and ectopic pregnancy.

In some cases, side effects may be severe enough to require revision surgery to remove the device, exposing the patient to the risks that come with surgery.

Essure Injury Cases Spark Lawsuits

According to Essure lawsuits, Bayer Healthcare failed to give adequate warning to patients and the medical community about these major Essure injury cases, and instead chose to actively withhold this valuable information. Plaintiffs claim that, had they been adequately informed of these major Essure adverse effects, they would never have chosen Essure birth control and could have avoided these injuries altogether.

If you or someone you love has suffered from any of these Essure adverse effects, you may be able to file a lawsuit. While filing a lawsuit cannot take away the pain and suffering caused by Essure, it can help to compensate for the financial cost of medical expenses and lost wages.