Women from across the country have allegedly suffered serious injuries from the Essure coils, which has spurred major legal action against Bayer HealthCare.

One of the most recent claims was filed by a woman from Mississippi, who alleges the permanent birth control device caused her to suffer serious complications and caused permanent damage to her reproductive organs.

Plaintiff Lenora H. says she had the Essure coils implanted for typical treatment purposes on April 9, 2009, with medical professionals later confirming it was in proper position in her fallopian tubes.

According to the Mayo Clinic, the Essure birth control device consists of two metal coils that are implanted into each fallopian tube, which is supposed to spur tissue growth. Once the tissue grows around the coils, sperm to egg fertilization is supposed to be permanently blocked. It typically takes three months for the fallopian tube muscle to surround the Essure coils, with some women taking up to six months.

The Essure birth control device was the only non surgical option for female sterilization, with many women opting for the device for its convenience and minimally invasive nature. However, the New York Times reports that this medical device has been linked to thousands of serious injuries ranging from cramping to ectopic pregnancy. The latter of these complications is caused by the device perforating and migrating out of the implant site, which can result in unwanted or ectopic pregnancies.

According to her lawsuit, Lenora started to suffer severe migraines, unusual bleeding, pain, cramping, and unusual menstrual cycles soon after having the permanent birth control device implanted.

Lenora’s symptoms reportedly became so bad that she had to undergo an ablation procedure on Jan. 28, 2015. An ablation procedure involves thinning of the lining of the uterus. Lenora says she opted to file legal action soon after discovering Bayer either knew or should have known about their device’s defective nature.

There have been a number of serious injuries reportedly linked to the Essure birth control device. Consumer advocates have called for the device to be recalled from the market and, in December of 2018, Bayer took Essure off the market. Advocates say that the Essure contraceptive should not have been approved by the FDA in the first place.

Overview of Essure Complications

The FDA issued a major change to the Essure warning label in April 2018, which required patients to fill out a “Decision Checklist” to ensure that they understood the risks of the potential device complications.

Even though this checklist required patients and doctors to issue their signatures, patients continued to report serious injuries. Bayer HealthCare later stopped selling the permanent birth control device in the U.S., stating the withdrawal of the device from the market was due to waning sales.

However, the thousands of Essure injury reports and testimony from patients may have influenced this decision. Since its release in 2002, there have been nearly 27,000 Essure injury reports submitted by patients.

Lenora states that she relied on the Essure patient brochure, which stated the device was safe and effective as a contraceptive measure. Lenora states she would not have had the Essure birth control device implanted, if she had known about the device’s allegedly dangerous nature.

Lenora is seeking a multitude of damages in her Essure lawsuit, including counts of negligence and failure to warn.

This Essure Lawsuit is Case No. 2:18-cv-05346-WB, in the U.S. District Court of Eastern Pennsylvania.