National pharmaceutical injury attorney and practicing physician comments on the status of the vaginal mesh litigation since the MDL has closed.

Greg Vigna, MD, JD, national pharmaceutical injury attorney, practicing physician, and Certified Life Care Planner comments on the status of the vaginal mesh litigation since the MDL has closed:

“We continue to be very selective as to the cases we accept to litigate, and our focus remains on specific neurological injuries caused by transvaginal mesh (TVM) devices that are clearly not related to surgical misfortune but caused by the design defects that makes the devices unreasonably dangerous.

Transobturator slings, mini-slings that insert into the obturator internus muscle, and retropubic slings all produce specific neurological pain syndromes that far exceeds what a reasonable consumer would anticipate for an elective procedure that is described by the manufacturers as minimally invasive. In addition, for each of these devices there are safer alternatives that would have avoided the harm. It is clear that secondary nerve entrapment is the primary mechanism of neurological injury from polypropylene mesh devices including the inflammatory response from muscles and soft tissue that results in mesh degradation and scarring that causes nerves to be compressed or pulled by the adjacent soft tissues that are affected by the mesh. The result is irritation or injury to important nerves that produce catastrophic neuropathic pain syndromes.

“Clearly the plaintiff attorneys in the MDL did little to nothing to push mid-urethral slings off the market as the Plaintiff Steering Committee was interested in cashing in on erosion cases…. ” — Dr. Greg Vigna

Most of our cases involve secondary nerve entrapment, and these are especially strong cases for the defect claim and warning claim as surgeons don’t anticipate injuries to nerves that occur outside the surgical field or injuries to nerves that become symptomatic years after implantation. The warnings provided by the manufacturers’ Instructions for Use (IFU) don’t describe the risks of secondary nerve entrapment and the magnitude of the risk. In fact, lacerations or direct injury to nerves by the mesh are proportionately low compared to secondary nerve entrapment. Largely, implanting physicians are unaware of the risks of secondary nerve entrapment from transobturator slings and mini-slings which include pudendal and obturator neuralgia.

Clearly the plaintiff attorneys in the MDL did little to nothing to push mid-urethral slings off the market as the Plaintiff Steering Committee was interested in cashing in on erosion cases that filled their dockets. The Post-MDL litigation is about neurological injuries as these are tragic injury cases with future care costs sometimes exceeding a half million dollars per decade of life. I believe the liability of manufacturers for causing neurological injuries through the sale and then the use of mid-urethral slings is as strong or stronger than neurological injuries caused by pelvic organ prolapse devices that don’t have transobturator arms.”

The Vigna Law Group targets the below transobturator (TOT) slings and mini-slings that cause pudendal and obturator neuralgia:

  • Ethicon: TVT-O, Abbrevo
  • Boston Scientific: Obtryx, Solyx
  • Coloplast: Aris, Altis

The Vigna Law Group targets the below retropubic slings that cause ilioinguinal neuralgia and Complex Regional Pain Syndrome:

  • Boston Scientific: Advantage Fit
  • Ethicon: TVT, TVT Exact
  • Coloplast: Supris

Dr. Vigna is a California and Washington DC lawyer who focuses on catastrophic neurological injuries caused by transvaginal mesh devices including pudendal neuralgia, obturator neuralgia, ilioinguinal neuralgia, and Complex Regional Pain Syndrome. He has clients with these diagnoses filed around the country with Martin Baughman, a Dallas Texas firm. Ben Martin and Laura Baughman are national pharmaceutical injury trial attorneys in Dallas, Texas.

To learn more on the anatomical basis for TOT injury or irritation to the obturator and pudendal nerve and the treatments of obturator and pudendal neuralgia click here: https://vignalawgroup.com/ebooks/pelvic-mesh-pain/#page=59

Click here for a FREE BOOK on Vaginal Mesh Pain. For articles, video resources, and information visit the Pudendal Neuralgia Educational Portal or https://tvm.lifecare123.com/. Click here for information regarding sling related complications.

Greg Vigna
Greg Vigna, M.D., J.D.
+1 800-761-9206
email us here
Visit us on social media:
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn