Articles Posted in Product Liability

Certain cochlear implants previously sold by Advanced Bionics and implanted in Tennessee residents and other people across the nation  have been recalled.  

The implants were placed into the head of the deaf and supposed to work by directly stimulating auditory nerves leading to the brain by means of an electrode array positioned in the choclea of the inner ear.

The Advanced Bionic implants that are the subject of the recall were  marketed under the name "HiResolution Bionic Ear System."  The implants were first made available in 2003.  Unfortunately for the patients who had the system implanted, the devices leaked and the moisture that seeped into the implant caused it to fail.  The result?  The devices need to be removed, forcing the patients to endure yet another surgery to the head.  More importantly,  the replacement device that is implanted may not function appropriately because of tissue or nerve changes arising from the explant surgery or other causes and, even if this problem is avoided, the patient must go through what is in essence a relearning process to gain the same level of auditory function as they had before.

A large number of claims concerning transvaginal mesh products manufactured by various companies are working their way toward trial.

The manufacturers of the products include C.R. Bard, Boston Scientific, American Medical Systems, and a division of Johnson & Johnson (Ethicon).

These products were used in thousands of woman to repair pelvic organ prolapse and female stress uninary incontinence. The products have been linked to severe complications, including erosion of the mesh into the vagina, recurrence of urinary problems, pelvic organ prolapse, vaginal mesh extrusion, and pain.

Surgical mesh is a medical device that is generally used to repair weakened or damaged tissue.  It has frequently been used to reinforce a weakened vaginal wall to repair pelvic organ prolapse (POP) or to support the urethra to treat urinary incontinence.

Medical literature demonstrates a significant complication rate when used to repair pelvic organ prolapse.  Erosion of mesh through the vagina is the most common and consistently reported mesh-related complication from transvaginal POP surgeries using mesh.  Mesh erosion can require multiple surgeries can be debilitating to some women. 

Mesh contraction is a another risk of transvaginal POP repair with mesh.  Mesh contraction can give rise to vaginal shortening, vaginal tightening, and vaginal pain.

Many women who have suffered from pelvic organ prolapse or stress urinary incontinence have been treated with transvaginal mesh implants.  All too often, these mesh implants have caused painful complications because of mesh eroding, degrading, curling, rolling, migrating or shrinking.

The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA)  issued an alert in October 2008 about transvaginal mesh, warning doctors about the more than 1000 adverse event reports it had received in the previous three years.  The reports included complaints of vaginal, bladder or bowel erosion, pelvic pain, bone and hip infections, inflammation, dyspareunia (painful sexual intercourse), bowel and bladder perforation, and recurrence of the underlying problem.

In July of 2100 the FDA issued a Safety Communication advising of 2,874 additional reports of complications. from 2008 to 2010.

 I bought a blender at a local retail store.  The first time I used it the glass container exploded and sent glass all over my kitchen, and into my arm, face and chest.   I told the store and they said they would give me a new one.  I don’t want a new blender – I want my medical bills paid and I want plastic surgery to reduce the severity of the scars on my face.  Can I sue the store?

Maybe. First, it makes a difference whether you were injured before October 1, 2011.  If you were injured before that date, you may be able to assert a claim for breach of warranty against the store that sold you the blender.

If you were injured on or after October 1, 2011, you can’t sue the store unless (a) the store damaged the blender and caused the problem; (b) the manufacturer has been declared insolvent or (c) the manufacturer cannot be sued in Tennessee.  As you can see, the new law makes it harder for Tennessee consumers to sue retailers who sell defective or unreasonably dangerous products.

I just bought four new tires on my call three weeks ago.  As I was driving down Interstate 24 near Nashville the front tire blew out, causing me to lose control of my car.  The car rolled and my entire family was hurt in the wreck   Do we have any rights against the manufacturer of the tires? 

Perhaps.   It is essential that you contact a lawyer who has experience in products liability cases as soon as possible.  It the meantime, preserve whatever is left of the tire and the other tires on the car.  Also, the entire car should be preserved – do not permit your auto insurer to allow it to be destroyed.

You will need the tire itself so that you can determine what went wrong with it (if anything).  You need to preserve the other tires and the car so that an expert can better understand what caused the wreck and what, if anything, was wrong with the tire that blew out.

My wife had hamburger steak dinner in a Clarksville, Tennessee restaurant about one week ago.  About three hours later she began developing severe nausea, bad stomach cramps and diarrhea.   She ended up in the hospital with kidney problems and the doctor said that she had an infection caused by e coli.   Her kidney may be permanently damaged.  What are her rights?

  It is estimated  that 76 million foodborne illness cases occur in the United States every year after eating foods contaminated with such pathogens as E. coli O157:H7, Salmonella, Hepatitis A, Campylobacter, Shigella, Norovirus, and Listeria.  Each year approximately 325,000 people are hospitalized with a diagnosis of food poisoning, and some 5,000 die.  

First, you should contact your local health department and report the problem.  The health department should immediately inspect the restaurant.  This will reduce the likelihood that additional  people will suffer  the same problems you developed.

My wife was at work when  a fire occurred.  Her employer says the  fire occurred  because a problem with a machine in the plant.  She was badly burned.  What are her legal rights? 

At an absolute minimum, your wife will be able to recover benefits under Tennessee’s worker’s compensation law.  Stated briefly, her medical bills will be paid, she will receive a portion of her normal wages until she is able to return to work, and she will receive an additional payment for any disability she has as a result of the injury.

However, your wife also may have a tort claim against the company that manufactured, installed, or maintained  the machine in question.  Thus, it is essential that an investigation be conducted to determine why the fire occurred.  Was there a problem with the machine from the day it was made?  Was it installed incorrectly?   Was it not properly maintained?  Was one or more of these things responsible for the cause of the fire?

I have filed a lawsuit concerning my Depuy ASR hip implant and it is part of the MDL.  How soon will additional action be required from me?

I mentioned in an earlier post  that the court overseeing the cases for defective Depuy ASR hip implants issued an order requiring claimants to file forms describing when the patient received the implant and providing some medical records from the patient’s treatment. Originally, the judge set a deadline for all claimants to file the form at the same time, but the judge recently changed the order.

Now, all claimants who are already in the combined Depuy cases have one deadline to file the completed form– July 5, 2011. Any claimants who file their lawsuits after June 2, 2011have thirty days from the date they file the lawsuit to file the information form.