Product Liability Lawyer Blog

December 2, 2016

J&J’s Ethicon Faces Physiomesh Lawsuit For Hernia Surgery Complications

Surgical mesh devices have caused significant problems for patients across the country. Transvaginal mesh and bladder slings have been the primary target of litigation, as patients suffered serious complications and many times were forced to undergo revision surgery. In some cases, people underwent multiple surgeries. Some did not survive.

Now, Ethicon, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, is facing a new round of products liability claims for its Physiomesh Open medical device, used for those who have suffered a hernia. The manufacturer marketed the product as a way to help bond the abdominal tissue, without exposure to the polypropylene material of which the product is made. Ethicon used a thick coating on both sides of the Physiomesh in order to protect human tissue, which can be severely damaged by direct contact with polypropylene. The problem, however, is that the mesh fails to properly incorporate into the abdominal wall, meaning it is floating around in the patient’s abdominal cavity. In other cases, the material breaks down and polypropylene does come in direct contact with human tissue, causing serious injuries.

The most recent Physiomesh lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida. In Quinn v. Ethicon and Johnson & Johnson, patient seeks damages in excess of $75,000 from the New Jersey-based company. Although defendants are both based in New Jersey, plaintiff asserts jurisdiction in Florida because the defective product was placed in the stream of commerce in Florida and caused injuries to patient while she resided in Florida. Continue reading

December 1, 2016

A Look at More Durable Hip and Knee Replacement Joints for Young Patients

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

In the past couple of decades, total knee and total hip replacement surgeries have become the two most common surgical procedures in the United States, with more than 600,000 operations and more than 300,000 operations respectively being performed each year. One of the reasons for the increase in the number of patients having a total joint replacement is that more young people are choosing to undergo procedures.

There are a variety of reasons more young people are choosing to having a total hip or total knee replacement. In years past, these operations were primarily for the elderly, because, when someone can no longer stay mobile, there tends to be a significant reduction in both quality of life and the years a person will live. However, a traditional artificial hip is rated to last between 10 and 20 years on the high end, so if they give the implant to a younger person, they will likely need a second or even third operation at some point in their lives. Continue reading

December 1, 2016

Exercise Program Shows Promise in Increasing Testosterone Levels in Obese Men

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

According to a recent article from Science Daily, a 12-week exercise program has been shown to significantly increase testosterone levels in men who are obese or overweight. Those who exercised more vigorously showed an even higher percentage in testosterone level increase than those who only exercised modestly during that 12-month period. These results are based on a study that was presented at the Biology of Exercise 7 meeting in Arizona.

This is good news, though it might not be welcomed news to the drug companies that make testosterone replacement hormone drugs. As we are told on the many commercials and magazine ads, men will experience lower testosterone or “T” levels, as they have coined, as they get older. This is part of the normal male aging process, and the “symptoms” of normal male aging are gaining weight, loss of libido, fatigue, mild depression, loss of muscle tone, and other similar similar symptoms. Continue reading

November 28, 2016

A Dozen Hospitals Allegedly Failed to Disclose Medical Device Related Injuries and Deaths

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is not only charged with the task of regulating pharmaceutical drugs, but also medical devices. Medical devices can include anything from a tool used by a surgeon, to an artificial knee, to a hybrid implant that slowly releases a medicine over time as a broken leg heals. While there is a lot of regulation of medical devices by the FDA, the regulations allow the medical device manufacturers a bit more leeway than they do in the case of drugs. There are also certain loopholes in medical device regulation, such as the one that allows a medical device on the market with less testing and data if there is already a similar device on the market.

For this reason, the FDA will conduct follow-up investigations in hospitals around the nation to see if these devices are working as planned. This should be easy for them to do since the hospitals are required to promptly report any injury or death that involved a medical device. However, according to a recent news report form Kaiser Health News, the FDA has just found that Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) in downtown Boston, as well as 11 other hospitals, have failed to promptly make these reports to the FDA and the medical device makers, as required by federal regulations. Continue reading

November 25, 2016

Hinrichs v. General Motors of Canada, Ltd.: Products Liability Claims

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

In Hinrichs v. General Motors of Canada, Ltd., an appeal before the Supreme Court of Alabama, plaintiff was riding as a passenger in a 2004 GMC pickup truck when he suffered a serious injury to his spinal cord. He was reportedly a victim of a drunk driver.

According to court records, plaintiff was in the pickup truck being driven by his friend when another driver allegedly ran a stop sign and collided with them. That motorist was arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol. When the collision occurred, the pickup truck in which plaintiff was riding flipped over and rolled twice, resulting in substantial damage to the vehicle. The point of the collision was the passenger door where plaintiff was sitting. Fortunately, he was wearing his seatbelt at the time of the serious car accident, so he was not ejected from the vehicle. When not wearing a seat belt, ejections are common and can often result in death. Continue reading

November 21, 2016

Johnson & Johnson Talc Victim Awarded $70 Million

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

According to a recent news article from Fortune, a woman in California has just been awarded $70 million by a jury in what is now the third lost trial for Johnson & Johnson in connection with its liability for cancer-causing baby powder.

This plaintiff, a 62-old-woman from California, had used talcum powder manufactured by the defendant for years for feminine hygiene purposes. She used the baby powder for around 40 years and only stopped when she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer three years ago. The cancer is already in a very advanced stage. She has undergone surgery and extensive cancer treatments, but as her lawyers argued to the jury, she will likely be dead within two years. Continue reading

November 17, 2016

FDA Issues Warnings for Testosterone Supplements

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

Over the past decade, we have seen a tremendous increase in the number of men taking testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) drugs. These drugs were originally developed for treatment of a relatively rare medical condition known as hypogonadism. That is the condition for which these drugs were approved by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the 1970s.

However’ that’s apparently not the reason hundreds of thousands of men are taking these drugs. The real reason these men have been taking TRT medicaitons is because of the many television commercials and magazine ads that tell us that taking testosterone supplements will help with all of the “symptoms” of normal male aging. This includes lowered libido, weight gain, fatigue, mild depression, loss of muscle tone and so on. The FDA has not approved the drug for this use, and doctors and researchers have not seen that taking testosterone will actually help “treat” any of these conditions. Continue reading

November 14, 2016

Tyson Chicken Issues Major Recall Over Plastic Scare

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

According to a recent news article from International Business Times, Tyson Foods, one of the world’s largest producers of poultry products, recently recalled over 130,000 pounds of fully cooked chicken nuggets because they believe these nuggets may contain hard plastic. This was announced after a statement by the U.S. Department of Agricultural (USDA) and its Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS).

Consumers who noticed the foreign substance in their fully cooked chicken nuggets first discovered this food contamination. This plastic is believed to have once been part of a rod used in a conveyor belt at the factory that transported the nuggets during the production and packaging process. Continue reading

November 11, 2016

Allegations that Johnson & Johnson and Bayer Hid Knowledge of Faulty Devices During Xarelto Trials

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

Last year, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) became aware that a device used to monitor a patient’s blood in Xarelto clinical trials had problems. Now it has been reported by British Medical Journal, and via FiercePharma, that the two major drug companies (Janssen/Johnson & Johnson and Bayer A.G.) were well aware of this faulty blood monitor during the time it was being used and did not notify any of the study monitors or the FDA.

The device in question is known as the INRatio device, and it was designed to monitor how much Xarelto was being absorbed by patients on a single dose as compared to those who were taking Warfarin (Coumadin). The reason this is very important has to do with why drug makers claim Xarelto and the other New Oral Anticoagulants (NOACs) are safer and more effective than traditional blood thinning medications like Warfarin. Continue reading

November 7, 2016

101-Year-Old Woman Has Hip Replacement – Sets Record

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

A 101-year-old woman now holds the Guinness Book of World Records title for being the oldest person ever to receive a total knee replacement, according to a recent news article from the Preston Citizen. Although it’s probably not a title she would have wished to have, considering it all stemmed from a serious fall in which she broke her hip, the surgery marks a notable feat for the medical community.

Prior to the fall accident, the woman had been dealing with serious knee pain for many years. Doctors felt there was no choice but to do a total hip replacement procedure if she was ever going to walk again, even with the assistance of a walker. After the hip replacement surgery, she was able to move the hip joint again, but she was having a lot of difficulty healing. The reason for this was due to her knee trouble. With the knee also being very week and deteriorated, she was unable to walk normally, and this was causing her to not heal properly following the total hip replacement procedure. Continue reading