In a transvaginal mesh complications trial, a California pelvic reconstructive obstetrician and gynecologic surgeon testified that pelvic mesh devices are extremely difficult to remove once the mesh has integrated with vaginal tissues.

Dr. Michael Margolis of El Camino Hospital in Los Gatos testified that removing Johnson & Johnson’s pelvic mesh from a woman’s vagina is like using a hammer and chisel to take rebar out of a sidewalk without damaging cables in the area.

The California lawsuit was filed through the Office of Attorney General Xavier Becerra. Johnson & Johnson’s Prolift, made by J&J subsidiary Ethicon, is a pelvic mesh device implanted in women who have suffered from a dropped bladder, a condition known as pelvic organ prolapse.

Prolift is a made of polypropylene mesh, which allegedly has injured women’s vaginal areas. The state of California also alleges Ethicon used deceptive marketing to promote the product and violated false advertising laws.

Dr. Margolis said he began removing pelvic mesh devices from women in 1998. Many of them reported suffering from chronic pain. He has seen complications caused by mesh erosion and the twisting of pelvic slings. He said if the mesh has been implanted for even a few months, it’s difficult to remove because of the way scar tissue attaches the mesh within the vaginal tissues.

Woman Awarded $80 Million Due to Transvaginal Mesh Complications

In May, a Philadelphia jury awarded a woman $80 million after she sued Johnson & Johnson over the damage caused by its Ethicon Prolift mesh. Some $50 million of the award was designated for punitive damages.

Patricia M. received the Prolift implant in 2008, when she was 64, to treat pelvic organ prolapse. Since then, she said she’s suffered pain, infection, inflammation and scar tissue that have required her to undergo further surgeries, none of which has alleviated her suffering.

Following two days of deliberations, the jury decided Prolift mesh was defective and that Johnson & Johnson did not adequately warn Patricia of the risks of implanting its pelvic mesh product, according to the Philadelphia Inquirer.

FDA Stops Sales of Vaginal Mesh for Pelvic Organ Prolapse

In April, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) halted the sale and distribution of mesh devices for the treatment of pelvic organ prolapse.

Mesh may still be used in surgeries to treat stress urinary incontinence, but many consumer advocates would prefer to see mesh banned from both procedures.

The FDA said more than 10,000 reports of serious injuries, and close to 80 deaths, have been associated with pelvic mesh. According to estimates, some 10 percent to 15 percent of all women with mesh devices have experienced complications from the decvice, which is implanted in the vaginal wall.

The reported transvaginal mesh complications include ongoing bleeding, chronic pain, inflammation, perforated bladders and vaginal scarring.  The New York Times reported that in some cases, the mesh protrudes through the vaginal wall, a painful condition that may be complicated by the onset of infection.