A Texas man says he suffered complications of IVC filter that were beyond what he was led to expect from the manufacturer’s product information.

Plaintiff Tommy B., a patient who received one of Bard’s G2 Vena Cava Filters, is part of a multidistrict litigation (MDL) claiming that Bard’s inferior vena cava (IVC) filters are defective and dangerous, and that Bard knew about and concealed information regarding patient injuries and deaths.

Tommy, who says he received his IVC filter on Aug. 30, 2006, is suing for 14 counts in the MDL, as well as punitive damages. On or about Nov. 8, 2016, Tommy was diagnosed with a caval thrombosis, which he believes is a result of his IVC.

Several plaintiffs have filed similar lawsuits against C.R. Bard Inc. and Bard Peripheral Vascular Inc. (Bard), alleging that Bard’s inferior vena cava (IVC) filters are not only ineffective at preventing the conditions they are intended to treat, but instead make it more likely that patients will develop those conditions. The conditions cited as complications of IVC filter include pulmonary embolus and deep vein thrombosis (DVT).

Lawsuits Relating to Complications of IVC Filter

The IVC filter MDL lawsuit claims that Bard focused on public relations rather than public safety, and lied to their own sales force about the dangers of their IVC filters. The lawsuit further claims that Bard disregarded changes they knew could be made to the design of the IVC filters to make them safer.

According to the IVC filter lawsuit, Bard’s IVC filters are prone to fracturing and breaking inside of patients. The broken pieces and edges of the device may migrate, resulting in perforations to internal organs. In extreme cases, shards of the broken device may migrate towards the heart where they can cause cardiac tamponade, perforation of the atrial wall, myocardial infarction, or death.

Complications of IVC Filter

According to an article published in the Annals of Surgery in October 2015 and cited in the IVC filter lawsuit, complications of IVC filter can include DVT, thromboemboli, pulmonary embolus, and death.

In their study of over 30,000 patients, the Annals of Surgery concluded that patients who had IVCs were more than twice as likely to experience a pulmonary embolus, more than four times as likely to contract thromboemboli, and more than five times as likely to develop DVT. The study also reported that more than twice as many of the study’s subjects who had IVC filters died compared to those who did not have them.

Overview of IVC Filters

First made commercially available in the 1960s, IVC filters are a medical device intended to prevent patients from experiencing serious medical conditions such as pulmonary emboli and DVT. They work by filtering and trapping blood clots that may travel towards the heart and lungs from other parts of the body. If a blood clot makes it to the heart or lungs, it can be deadly.

When a patient is at risk of developing one of these conditions, doctors may prescribe anticoagulants, which is to say blood thinning medications, to mitigate the risk of blood clots. However, in some high risk patients, medication is not adequate to reduce their risk of pulmonary embolus, and doctors may recommend surgically implanting an IVC filter.

Case Information

The plaintiffs in this MDL are seeking damages including: compensatory damages, punitive damages, medical expenses, funeral expenses if applicable, past and future pain and suffering, past and future emotional distress, past and future lost wages, and loss of earning capacity.

If you have had an IVC filter implanted, you may be eligible to join a class action lawsuit, even if you have not suffered any complications.

Tommy’s IVC Filter Lawsuit is Case No. 2:18-cv-03912-DGC and is part of the Bard IVC Filter MDL, In re: Bard IVC Filters Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2641, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona.