An Arizona man recently filed a vena cava filter lawsuit against Cook Medical, Inc., alleging that the company’s vena cava filter device caused serious damage.

The device involved in this vena cava filter lawsuit is the Günther Tulip Vena Cava Filter, manufactured by Cook Medical.

According to the vena cava filter lawsuit, the plaintiff, Rainier A., was implanted with the vena cava filter on July 31, 2015. However, after implantation of the device, the plaintiff began to suffer from serious complications.

The plaintiff filed this vena cava filter lawsuit on multiple counts, including failure to warn, design defect, negligence, breach of express and implied warranties, and others.

The vena cava filter lawsuit was filed against multiple defendants, including Cook Incorporated, Cook Medical LLC, and William Cook Europe ApS.

This vena cava filter lawsuit was filed as part of an MDL, or multidistrict litigation, which combines a number of similar lawsuits together.

Vena Cava Filter Side Effects

An IVC filter, also known as an inferior vena cava filter, is a medical device intended to prevent blood clots from entering a patient’s lungs and heart. However, a growing number of reports in recent years have suggested that these devices can cause serious injuries and complications.

Vena cava filter lawsuits across the U.S. are claiming that the product can be dangerous for patients. According to these lawsuits, IVC filter devices are not worth the risk they pose to patients, and allege that the devices themselves may be more harmful than the blood clots they are intended to treat.

Adverse event reports filed with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the past decade show that hundreds of patients have suffered from punctured organs and filter migrations, which can cause major complications.

Filing a Vena Cava Filter Lawsuit

This vena filter lawsuit, and many others like it, claim that Cook Medical should take responsibility for the devastating effects their devices have allegedly had on patients and families across the country.

The plaintiffs allege that Cook was aware that the device can lead to serious complications but continued to market and sell it anyway, placing profit over patient safety.

The FDA has responded to the claims against the safety of vena cava filters. The agency recommends that retrievable IVC filters only be used on a temporary rather than permanent basis, and only if medications or other treatments are deemed ineffective.

Injured patients have filed IVC filter lawsuits against a number of companies that make these vena cava filter devices, citing a number of serious complications including organ damage due to filter migration and breaks.

If you or someone you love has undergone complications after being implanted with an IVC filter, you may have cause to file a vena cava filter lawsuit.

The Vena Cava Filter Lawsuit is Case No. 1:17-cv-00700-RLY-TAB, in the U.S. District Court for the Indianapolis Division of the Southern District of Indiana.