Intuitive Surgical Hit With da Vinci Robot Surgery Lawsuit

A Tennessee woman has filed a da Vinci robot lawsuit against Intuitive Surgical Inc. alleging that while undergoing surgery she suffered permanent organ damage and the leaking of stomach acid as a result of the defective surgical device.

Monda Meyer filed the da Vinci lawsuit due to significant complications she suffered that she alleges were caused by the da Vinci Surgical System. Meyer’s rectum and vaginal walls were fused and tissue had died on the rear vaginal wall. In addition, the doctors also had to deal with an anastomotic leak, which occurs when the connection between the intestine and the stomach is damaged and can lead to acid leaking into other areas of the body.

According to Meyer’s da Vinci robot surgery lawsuit, none of this would have been necessary had the device been properly designed and/or tested. It uses monopolar energy to cauterize tissue and for other surgical needs. This means that the device sends current through the patient’s body and finally into a ground plate beneath the body. If this plate is misplaced or dislodged, the current can “arc” or travel through unintended parts of the body.

This situation is exacerbated if the insulation at the end of the tool fails. According to the da Vinci lawsuit, “the insulation on the shafts of the said device becomes torn and worn in places, without the awareness of the physician user, allowing electrical current to pass into tissue outside the operative field.”

Reportedly, Intuitive Surgical has failed to warn patients and surgeons of these risks or use alternative technologies compared to its monopolar system. Instead, it allegedly “sold its robotic device through a calculated program of intimidation and market management, forcing hospitals and physicians to purchase it in order to appear competitive.” Indeed, even though the company has marketed the tools effectively, the amount of training can be just a day or two, according to the da Vinci lawsuit.

Many more da Vinci robot surgery lawsuits will need to be filed for some to consider grouping plaintiffs into a class action lawsuit or multidistrict litigation (MDL), which is more appropriate since the injuries vary.

MDLs are like class action lawsuits in that similar lawsuits are consolidated together and plaintiffs can share resources. But the lawsuits are ultimately treated separately, since the allegations are not exactly the same and the extent of the damages are not the same.

The da Vinci robot surgery lawsuit is Monda Meyer v. Intuitive Surgical Inc., Case No. 14-cv-02129, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

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