Transvaginal Mesh Lawsuit Plaintiff Takes Stand in First New Jersey C.R. Bard Trial

Published on April 9, 2018 by Sandy Liebhard

The plaintiff at the center of New Jerseys’ first trial of a transvaginal mesh lawsuit involving products manufactured by C.R. Bard, Inc. recently took the stand to recount the painful complications she allegedly experienced in connection with the company’s Align and Avaulta devices.

Transvaginal Mesh Lawsuit Plaintiff: “It hurts so much you can’t cry.”

“Sharp pains in the vagina,” Mary McGinnis, 70, told a Bergen County Superior Court jury on March 29th “They radiate out and can go in any direction they want, sharp thick pains that shoot up. You realize nobody can help me – I have to tough it through. The pain is unending; the burning is horrible. It’s beyond debilitating. It hurts so much you can’t cry.”

According to her complaint, McGinnis was implanted with Align and Avaulta pelvic mesh devices in 2009 to treat stress urinary incontinence and pelvic organ prolapse. She has since undergone several additional transvaginal mesh revision surgeries, including vaginal reconstruction, to treat complications allegedly caused by the implants, including tissue inflammation, scar tissue formation, and mesh shrinkage, yet continues to cope with chronic pain and discomfort.

McGinnis, who operates a childcare facility, told jurors that her pelvic mesh complications have affected her ability to work.

“I would tell parents bringing their child for an interview, ‘I can no longer lift your child, but I can love your child,’” McGinnis said.

McGinnis claims that her Avaulta and Align mesh implants were defectively designed and manufactured. She further asserts that C.R. Bard knew that the material used to manufacture the devices could interact adversely with vaginal tissue but failed to warn doctors and patients of this risk.

The case is Mary McGinnis VS C.R. Bard, Inc, No. 017543-14

C.R. Bard Transvaginal Mesh Litigation

In recent years, more than 100,000 transvaginal mesh lawsuits have been filed in U.S. courts against C.R. Bard and other device manufacturers, including American Medical Systems, Inc., Boston Scientific Corp., and Ethicon, Inc.

Only two cases involving C.R. Bard’s products have gone to trial thus far, with two juries ruling in favor of plaintiffs:

• In 2012, a jury in California Superior Court awarded $5.5 million to another Avaulta plaintiff.
• A second Avaulta recipient was awarded $2.2 million by a West Virginia federal court jury in 2013.
• The defense prevailed in a 2016 Missouri case involving C.R. Bard’s Align and Boston Scientific’s Solyx implants

In recent years, C.R. Bard has reached agreements to confidentially settle hundreds of additional transvaginal mesh claims involving its devices.