C.R. Bard Hernia Mesh Lawsuits Continue, With Recent Filings in Ohio and California

Published on July 25, 2018 by Sandy Liebhard

C.R. Bard, Inc. continues to face a growing number of lawsuits involving allegedly defective polypropylene hernia mesh products.

Most recently, two new hernia mesh lawsuits were filed in Ohio and California federal courts on behalf of individuals who claim to have suffered serious injuries and complications following implantation of Bard’s Ventralex ST and Ventralight ST devices.

California Hernia Mesh Lawsuit: Ventralex ST Coating Triggered Inflammatory Response

According to a compliant filed in the U.S. District Court, Central District of California on July 27^th, William Kamp received a Ventralex ST hernia patch during laparoscopic umbilical hernia repair surgery in February 2016.

It became apparent several months later that the hernia mesh had failed, forcing Kamp to undergo hernia revision surgery. During the procedure, his surgeon discovered that serum and puss had collected around the mesh.

Ventralex ST consists of a self-expanding patch that contains two layers of polypropylene mesh. These two lawyers are stitched together with polytetrafluorethylene monofilament to an expanded polytetrafluorethylene sheet.

“Scientific evidence shows that the ST coating, which is not used in any other hernia mesh product sold in the United States, incites an intense inflammatory response, leading to encapsulation, deformation, scarification and contraction, migration, excess adhesion formation, erosion and rejection,” the complaint states. “The impermeable ST coating inhibits proper tissue ingrowth and causes a tissue reaction that provides a breeding ground for infection and excessive adhesion type reactions. This ST coating also causes immunogenic response and was known to be cytotoxic.” (Case No.5:18-cv-01375)

Ohio Hernia Mesh Lawsuit: Ventralight ST Caused Abdominal Perforations

According to an earlier hernia mesh lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio, on July 18^th, Robert Prater received the Ventralight ST patch in January 2013, during ventral hernia repair surgery. The device was removed in 2016, after his doctors discovered that the implant had perforated Prater’s anterior abdominal wall and was leaking ascitic fluid.

“The ST coating is designed and intended to resorb in less than 30 days,” Prater’s complaint states. “When the ST coating is disrupted, degrades, and/or resorbs, the “naked” polypropylene mesh and PGA is exposed to the adjoining tissue and viscera, and can become adhered to organs, and cause incarceration of organs, and fistula formation.” (Case: 4:18-cv-01663)

Bard Hernia Mesh Lawsuit Plaintiffs Want Federal Claims Centralized

In April, a group of plaintiffs filed a petition with the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPML) seeking to have all federally-filed Bard hernia mesh lawsuits centralized in a single U.S. District Court. At the time, roughly 50 product liability claims involving the company’s polypropylene hernia mesh implants had been filed in 21 federal jurisdictions around the country.

The JPML will take up the matter tomorrow, when it convenes its July Hearing Session in Santa Fe, New Mexico.