A transvaginal mesh lawsuit filed by a Texas woman adds to the more than 70,000 other cases centralized into multidistrict litigation in West Virginia.

Plaintiff Judy H. is accusing Johnson & Johnson as well as its subsidiary Ethicon Inc. of designing a defect product, which caused personal injuries along with emotional distress.

The bladder sling lawsuit alleges that Judy was implanted with a TVT-Obturator (TVT-O) in 2006 only to suffer from severe vaginal mesh side effects.

Judy is accusing the surgical mesh manufacturers of negligent misrepresentation, failure to warn and common law fraud.

Transvaginal Mesh Multidistrict Litigation

In a MDL Statistics Report published earlier this year, seven different vaginal mesh manufacturers face pending litigation. Johnson & Johnson’s Ethicon face the largest number of lawsuits at 25,013 cases.

Other surgical mesh manufacturers have the following:

• American Medical Systems – 19,653
• Boston Scientific – 16,437
• C.R. Bard – 10,932
• Coloplast – 2,036
• Cook Medical – 338
• Neomedic – 105

Some vaginal mesh settlements have already been reached, including one reached with manufacturer C.R. Bard who agreed to pay $200 million to settle 3,000 lawsuits.

Transvaginal Mesh Problems

Surgical mesh is essentially a hammock-like device that is implanted in the vaginal area. These bladder slings were marketed to women as a discreet way to treat pelvic organ prolapse, which may occur following childbirth, during menopause or after having a hysterectomy.

However, women who have filed transvaginal mesh lawsuits allege the side effects were so painful they typically were forced to undergo a second surgery to have the pelvic mesh removed.

Commonly reported vaginal mesh complications include:

• Perforated bladder
• Perforated bowel
• Perforated blood vessels
• Painful sexual intercourse
• Bladder infections
• Vaginal infections
• Urinary problems
• Vaginal scaring
• Multiple occurrences of pelvic organ prolapse

Organ perforation is a severe vaginal mesh complication that occurs with device failure. Organ perforation can lead to septic shock if urine or excrement leaks into the bloodstream. This is a life-threatening situation that requires the vaginal mesh be surgically removed.

Transvaginal Mesh Lawsuits

Surgical mesh lawsuits typically claim that manufacturers were reckless with their design which mislead patients into believing the product was a safe and effective treatment of pelvic organ prolapse.

Vaginal mesh attorneys seek to award their plaintiffs financial compensation to help pay for medical bills, missed work, as well as the physical and emotional pain and suffering they have endured.

Filing a transvaginal mesh lawsuit is typically the only way women, spouses and families can receive monetary assistance for their injuries. Spouses can join a surgical mesh lawsuit as a co-plaintiff and sue for loss of consortium (loss of intimacy) which could increase a settlement award.

Families who have lost a loved one due to transvaginal mesh complications can file a wrongful death lawsuit which may lead to millions in financial compensation.

Contact a vaginal mesh attorney to find out your legal options.

The Transvaginal Mesh Lawsuit is In Re: Ethicon Inc., Pelvic Repair System Products Liability Litigation, Case No. 2:15-cv-14909 and MDL No. 2327 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia, Charleston Division.