For many people who cannot tolerate anticoagulant medications, commonly called blood thinners, an inferior vena cava filter helps prevent blood clots from turning deadly.

Implanted in patients since 1979, inferior vena cava filters are small cage-like structures that capture blood clots before the clots can travel to the lungs, where they could result in a pulmonary embolism.

Some patients are having issues with the filters migrating to organs in the body. Inferior vena cava filters have also broken apart, with the resulting pieces puncturing veins or even the heart.

Manufacturers of these devices are facing inferior vena cava filter class action lawsuits due to design defects, manufacturing defects and failure to warn.

C.R. Bard’s Inferior Vena Cava Filter Complications

While many of these devices work as intended, the C.R. Bard brand of filter called Recovery has been linked to 27 deaths and 300 adverse events.

The Recovery inferior vena cava filter looks like a spider because it has several thin, bent wires that protrude downward from a central “body.”

After suffering a severe headache and passing out just four months after her Recovery inferior vena cava filter was implanted, Dodi F. endured emergency open-heart surgery. Among her inferior vena cava filter complications was that a piece of the filter had broken away and pierced her heart.

In an interview with NBC News, she says that her family was alerted to her condition, and a priest visited her. She considers herself fortunate to be alive.

Another patient, Gloria A., suffered fatal consequences just one week after receiving the Recovery inferior vena cava filter. While it was meant to stop blood clots, one blood clot actually pushed the entire filter into her heart. Gloria’s heart was punctured, and she died.

Bard’s G2 filter and G2 Express filter are also subjects of lawsuits.

Side Effects from Cook Medical’s Inferior Vena Cava Filters

Cook Medical manufactures inferior vena cava filters that also have been accused of breaking apart or simply moving inside the body.

As they migrate through the body, broken pieces can tear veins and blood vessels. Among the most dangerous of the inferior vena cava filter side effects, the pieces have been known to become embedded in such risky areas.

Because of this risk factor, surgeons are inclined to leave the foreign structures in place as the best alternative.

Two of Cook’s inferior vena cava filters are under the most scrutiny: the Cook Gunther Tulip filter and the Cook Celect filter.

FDA and Inferior Vena Cava Filter Complications

The FDA has not issued recalls on these filters, but has stated that inferior vena cava filters should be used only as short-term solutions. The device should be removed once the risk of pulmonary embolism has passed, says the FDA.

If you or a loved one received an inferior vena cava filter and subsequently suffered serious side effects such as puncture, device migration or pulmonary embolism, you may be entitled to compensation for your injuries.

While filing an IVC filter lawsuit cannot take away the pain and suffering endured, it can help to alleviate medical costs or lost wages attributed to a defective inferior vena cava filter.

An experienced dangerous medical device attorney can review your case at no cost or obligation to you and advise you if pursing legal action is the best recourse for you.