Bayer AG continues to feel the legal and financial sting from Essure problems.

More than 3,700 Essure lawsuits have been filed over the contraceptive device. Women who were sold on the ease of the procedure are claiming their health was the large price they paid for the simple, in-office procedure.

Based in Germany, Bayer released its 2016 annual report, which includes $413 million in losses related to Essure problems. Even so, the company made a net income of $4.8 billion.

The annual report recognized that the company is insured against “statutory product liability claims … to the extent customary in the respective industries,” but “the accounting measures related to (birth control pill) Yasmin/YAZ and Essure claims exceed the available insurance coverage.”

What Are Essure Problems?

Essure birth control system is a permanent, non-surgical sterilization procedure for women that was approved by the FDA in 2002.

Coils are made of stainless steel on the inside, but include a nickel alloy on the outside. The metal coils are covered in small plastic fibers to produce a fibrotic reaction when inserted into the fallopian tubes.

After three months of the body reacting by producing tissue growth, the fallopian tubes are blocked, forming a “natural” barrier between sperm and eggs.

Possible Essure problems allegedly include:

• Debilitating pain in the ovaries or uterus
• Headaches
• Irregular bleeding
• Device migration
• Nausea
• Flu-like symptoms
• Joint pain
• Muscle weakness
• Abdominal pain
• Painful intercourse
• Back pain
• Heavier periods

Essure Problems Include Nickel, Plastics

Conceptus was the company that created Essure before Bayer bought the rights to the device. Conceptus allegedly convinced the FDA to leave off a label that would have warned people with hypersensitivity to nickel to undergo a skin test to assess whether Essure implantation was appropriate for them.

This omission purportedly gave Essure a huge advantage over a competitive product that kept the nickel warning on its label.

Essure problems don’t stop with the metals. The plastic coating on the Essure coils is made of PET fibers, plasticizers used in a variety of commercial products. Plasticizers work well when used as stain or water repellants on certain materials, but PET fibers will break down when exposed to heat.

As PET fibers degrade, they release a toxin called acetaldehyde. This chemical is a byproduct in the metabolism of alcohol and the main cause of liver damage in alcoholics. Acetaldehyde also is a cancer-causing by-product of wood smoke.

Essure birth control’s PET fibers can break down and release antimony, a semi-metallic chemical element that is toxic when applied topically. Over time, antimony can cause everything from heart issues to cell death similar to arsenic poisoning.

Both plasticizer compounds have been proven to seep into drinking water from plastic bottles exposed to temperatures above 65 degrees. The body temperature inside the fallopian tubes is at least 98.6 degrees.

If you have received this implanted birth control without knowing of possible Essure problems, and have suffered complications from the Essure medical device, you could be eligible to participate in an Essure lawsuit.