Legal claims are being filed by former recipients of IVC filters. These filters were made for capturing blood clots before they get to the lungs. Recipients are claiming poor manufacturing and design saying the faulty filters have caused punctured veins as well as having migrated and caused other medical problems.
Surgeons have been implanting the retrievable devices in patients’ veins to prevent dangerous blood clots from moving to the lungs. The IVC filters catch the clot as it flows through the blood stream. After some time, the clots dissolve.
IVC Filter FDA Warning
Since 2005, the FDA has received hundreds of negative reports about the IVC filters. The reports include punctured organs, blood vessels, and the filters migrating to other parts of the body. The FDA released a warning in 2010 stating the filters posed a risk of the filter fracturing, migrating to other areas, and possibly perforating organs. It is recommended that they be removed as soon as the risk of blood clots subsides. Not long after the warning from the FDA, lawsuits were filed across the United States claiming the filters were harmful, even causing death to patients who had them implanted.
IVC Filter Manufacturer Cook Group, Inc. and C.R. Bard
The IVC filters in question were manufactured by Cook Group, Inc. and C.R. Bard. The particular brands names in the lawsuits are:
· The Bard G2 Express Filter
· The Bard Recovery Filter
· The Bard G2 Filter
The lawsuits have been filed for negligence, design defects, failure to warn the consumer and medical community, defects in manufacturing, breaches of implied warranty, and negligent misrepresentation.
IVC Filter Litigation Status
Lawsuits were first filed against C.R. Bard in Pennsylvania and California courts in 2012. Injures were alleged. In 2014, the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation consolidated the lawsuits from 11 different districts. On February 2015, C.R. Bard settled the case of Kevin Philips just 10 days after the trial started. According to the lawsuit, the Bard Recovery IVC filter broke inside Mr. Philips’ body and one of the small metal legs then traveled to his heart causing a perforation. That tear forced Mr. Philips to undergo open heart surgery involving a very lengthy recovery.
In Brown v. Bard, Brown claimed that Bard fraudulently concealed health hazards from Recovery, G2 and G2 Express filters. Brown also argued that Bard should electro-polish their devices to remove blemishes. It has been known for years that electro-polishing results in the increase of structural integrity and in resistance of fatigue failures. The claims alleged negligence, manufacturing defects, design defects, and failure to warn patients about the dangers of the devices. Brown v. Bard is still pending.
Life-Threatening Side Effects
Even though the filters were in fact designed to prevent a pulmonary embolism (PE), a life threatening blood clot in the lungs, they still have life-threatening side effects. The FDA released a report in 2010 saying they received over 900 reports of adverse effects associated with the IVC filters. The adverse effects listed in the report included:
· Filter perforations
· Device migrations
· Filter fractures
· Embolisms
· Device detachment
Several reports are continuing to show the dangerous side effects of IVC filters, including research published by the Journal of the American Medical Association of Internal Medicine.
Product Liability Personal Injury Attorney
If you or someone your love has suffered serious side effects, or even death, due to the use of IVC filters, you need an experienced personal injury attorney on your side.
CONTACT the Lieser Law Firm today for your FREE case evaluation.