Essure has been seen as a breakthrough contraceptive device, but after reports of severe complications, many women have opted to have the device removed. However, more recently, women have also reported Essure removal problems.

Essure is made by Bayer and has been promoted as a permanent form of birth control that does not require invasive surgery. But reports of complications such as bloating, rashes, allergic reactions, excessive bleeding, organ perforation, pelvic pain, miscarriage and ectopic pregnancy have plagued the device since it first came onto the market.

The Essure device is a set of two small metal coils. A coil is placed in each fallopian tube which stimulates tissue growth, thereby blocking the sperm from reaching the egg. Women should be evaluated a few months after implantation so that their doctors can determine if the procedure has been successful.

But for those who have experienced complications, a news agency out of Richmond, Virginia, 8News, has recently reported on the fact that Essure removal problems are now of concern among women who have the device implanted.

They say that they have reported in the past on women who experience complications with the birth control device;  now they have uncovered how Essure removal problems are also something many women experience.

One woman, Khristi Gurganus, tells 8News that she suffered for years from a bad rash and chronic pain she alleges is a result of the Essure birth control. She says, “I had a sharp stabbing pain begin on my right side.”

Gurganus eventually found a doctor that was willing to remove the Essure device for her and she claims, as soon as she woke up from surgery, she felt better. However, she soon began to suffer from Essure removal problems, she tells 8News.

On Facebook, multiple Essure pages, such as an Essure problems Facebook page, have formed that have over 32,000 members. Gurganus found that other women were also experiencing Essure removal problems just like she was.

Dr. Steven McCarus, a gynecological surgeon from Florida, tells 8News that the Essure device can be difficult to remove. Even though he has done nearly 100 Essure removal surgeries, he claims that the device can migrate in a woman’s body.

McCarus says, “I have had patients in my experience that have Essure devices up by the liver, by the bowel. It is almost like finding the needle in the haystack sometimes.”

Gurganus’ Essure removal problems also stem, she believes, from the fact her doctor used a controversial medical tool during her surgery called a power morcellator.

She claims that she continues to have “very acute pain” on her right side and that her rash still is an issue.

McCarus gives advice to potential Essure removal candidates: “Patients need to search, they really need to question their physicians.”