A Rhode Island jury has heard both sides in the lawsuits involving CR Bard’s Ventralex hernia mesh. Plaintiffs argued that the Bard Ventralex’s design of polypropylene is inherently defective.
Defendants Davol Inc. and C.R. Bard face accusations that their Ventralex brand hernia mesh implant utilizes polypropylene resin which supposedly causes adverse tissue reactions. Plaintiffs in hernia mesh cases argue the devices have left them beleaguered with side effects ranging from chronic pain to infections to nerve damage, and that companies like Davol and Bard allegedly sold the devices despite knowledge of their risk to patients.
Davol and Bard deny the allegations, maintaining hernia mesh helps many patients without complications, and that the plaintiffs’ alleged injuries are the result of other surgeries and medical conditions.
However, there is no denial of the fact that the Ventralex hernia mesh has been the subject of numerous revision surgeries including explaintation of the defective product.
Numerous trials involving transvaginal mesh have gone to trial in state and federal courts over the last decade, but only a small handful of cases to date involved mesh implants designed specifically to treat hernias as opposed to to the pelvic organ prolapse that some women experience.
The state court trial is expected to last weeks and will rely heavily on expert testimony. The bellwether trial will undoubtedly affect future hernia mesh lawsuits pending trial dates.
