Mirena IUD Migrated & Perforated Uterus, Lawsuit Says

Mirena IUD Migrated & Perforated Uterus, Lawsuit Says

By Jessica Tyner

Lisa Bryant chose the Mirena IUD for the same reason many women do — it’s easy, there’s no remembering to take a pill, and a lot of the time a woman’s menstrual cycle completely stops. Unfortunately, the Mirena IUD also has a tendency to migrate and can cause permanent damage, including infertility. 

Bryant filed a Mirena injury lawsuit on July 30, 2013, for these very reasons. The North Carolina resident is claiming a “product liability action,” saying that the makers of Mirena “designed, labeled and sold” and defective medical device that had to be surgically removed on August 6, 2010, after it migrated from its original position.

Bayer, the manufacturer of Mirena, is facing a slew of Mirena lawsuits from women just like Bryant who have complained that the IUD doesn’t always stay put — but they weren’t properly warned of this propensity for Mirena to migrate. This IUD has been available since 2000, but “soon after the first sales and with increasing incidence up until the present, Bayer has received notices of complications with the use of the IUD including embedment in the wall of the uterus and perforation of the wall.”

This is exactly what happened to Bryant. According to her, and many Mirena victims like her, this embedment is caused by a faulty design of the IUD. She says Bayer “failed to issue warnings of the risks associated with the IUD which were commensurate with the risks of which it was aware.” Furthermore, Bryant claims that Bayer chose to conceal the risks of Mirena IUD migration from patients, doctors and the healthcare community at large.

The Mirena Lawsuit Allegations 

Bryant had her Mirena implanted on March 12, 2007. It wasn’t until three years later that the allegedly defective IUD was removed. Bayer warns that the IUD may perforate the lining of the uterus during insertion — but many Mirena suffers say the IUD actually migrates later, sometimes months or years later, causing unnecessary pain.

Bryant is suing Bayer because she “sustained and continues to suffer economic damages (including lost wages, medical and hospital expenses), severe and possible permanent injuries, plus pain, suffering and emotional distress.” 

In Bryant’s case, the Mirena IUD had migrated to her abdomen, which is a long route for a device implanted in her uterus. The Mirena removal surgery in 2010 was successful, but didn’t come without plenty of pain, discomfort and of course medical bills. She’s suing Bayer for manufacturing defect, design defect, failure to warn, negligence, breach of warranty, fraud and misrepresentation. 

In Bryant’s Mirena case, “punitive and exemplary damages for the wanton, willful, fraudulent, reckless acts” of Bayer will only touch the surface of her experience. She says Bayer “demonstrated a complete disregard and reckless indifference for the safety and welfare of the general public.”

Bryant is asking for past and future damages including pain and suffering, health care costs, medical monitoring and interest. Attorney’s fees, the cost of proceedings and any other relief the trial by jury deems appropriate is part of Bryant’s case. According to Bryant, Bayer represented false safety of Mirena to everyone when the company “knew those representations to be false.” Claiming that Mirena was safe was a willful lie, says Bryant.

The intent of these fraudulent claims was to “defraud and deceive” Bryant, her doctors, and other women like her who were looking for a safe form of birth control, the Mirena lawsuit alleges. Bryant says that she and her doctors were “unaware of the falsity of said representations and reasonably believed them to be true.” She didn’t have the chance to decide if the cost-benefit risk factor was a good gamble for her.

The Mirena lawsuit is Lisa P. Bryant v. Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals Inc., Case No.: 1:13-cv-00631-NCT-LPA, in the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina Greensboro.

Did Your Mirena Migrate?

Do you feel duped by the marketing of Mirena, or not warned properly about the risks? If your IUD hurt you, you may qualify for a Mirena legal claim. Find out more at the Mirena IUD Injury Class Action Lawsuit Settlement Investigation. After submitting your story, a Mirena injury lawyer will contact you if you have a case for a free Mirena claim review.