Lawyers are looking into claims for patients who underwent hernia repair surgery using Ethicon Physiomesh and experienced major side effects like hernia recurrence, abdominal pain, and organ perforation.
The composite mesh manufacturer voluntarily withdrew it from the market in 2016 after establishing that it had more hernia recurrence rates than other mesh devices.
If you or your loved one was injured or required additional surgery, you may have a legal claim and be eligible for compensation.
Read this article to the end to know the status of Ethicon Physiomesh lawsuits and the conditions for which you can seek compensation.
Update on Ethicon Physiomesh Hernia Lawsuits
May 2, 2022 Update
The Ethicon Physiomesh hernia repair lawsuits are being resolved through a global settlement. No settlement figures have been made public yet, so you cannot be sure what your specific settlement sum will be.
Will there be more legal cases involving Ethicon hernia mesh in the future? Other Ethicon Physiomesh lawsuits are likely to arise because most victims are yet to experience the complications. Many people out there still have a recalled mesh in their bodies.
June 14, 2021 Update
Settlement rumors intensified after the J&J Ethicon Physiomesh trial on June 7, 2021, which attorneys believed could be the catalyst for a class action settlement, was postponed.
Perhaps Johnson & Johnson is (prudently) trying to settle these claims before facing a significant jury verdict.
Information will be out soon on whether a Physiomesh settlement is imminent or whether attorneys need jury verdicts to compel J&J to make settlement offers to compensate victims for their damages.
Status of Ethicon Physiomesh Hernia Repair Lawsuits
So, what is the current status of the Ethicon Physiomesh lawsuits? All federal product liability lawsuits regarding Ethicon Physiomesh hernia repair have been centralized before Richard Story, the U.S. District Judge in the Northern District of Georgia.
That means regardless of where you are, you can file a case against Ethicon for its faulty hernia mesh in Georgia before Judge Story (unless you file a state court claim which is only allowed in a few states).
By April 2022, over 3,617 Johnson & Johnson Ethicon Physiomesh lawsuits were outstanding in the MDL class action. The first trial was scheduled for June 7, 2021, but it was postponed amid churning settlement rumors.
A resolution has recently been reached. Some Ethicon Physiomesh lawsuit victims will opt to forgo the settlement. However, the majority will accept the settlement amount, and their cases will be resolved.
If you wish to file a hernia mesh lawsuit but are yet to, you should do so immediately to avoid falling foul of the statute of limitations. Most of these Ethicon Physiomesh lawsuits may be worth a significant amount at trial and in a settlement.
What Is Physiomesh?
Physiomesh is a type II medical device used in hernia repair surgeries. Hernia surgery is when tissues or organs squeeze through a hole or weak area in the abdominal muscle.
Physiomesh is made of flexible plastic (polypropylene) filaments woven into a fabric-like mesh. It is weaker than other devices because of its lightweight construction, which consumes less polypropylene than other mesh products.
The mesh is coated in Monocryl because Polypropylene, when in contact with the body, can lead to adhesions and inflammation at the region where the device binds with internal organs.
Unfortunately, this coating hinders the mesh from binding into the abdominal wall, where it should repair the hernia.
Hernia Recurrence and Other Complications
The most prevalent complication associated with Physiomesh that requires surgery is hernia recurrence. When a hernia returns after surgery, it is said to have recurred.
In 2015, the Polish Hernia Study Group conducted a Physiomesh clinical trial. The trial used Physiomesh Flexible Composite Mesh for laparoscopic surgery.
The researchers stopped the trial when they discovered greater than predicted recurrences. Ethicon subsequently pulled out the laparoscopic version of Physiomesh from the market.
Apart from the high recurrence rates, physicians and patients reported other problems to the FDA, including:
- Inflammation
- Adhesion
- Allergic reactions
- Scarring
- Bowel obstruction
- Severe abdominal pain
- Infections
- Organ perforation
- Mesh migration
- Mesh fractures
- Additional surgeries
You should speak to a lawyer if you or your loved one has suffered these side effects after hernia repair surgery.
Get in touch with Legal Giant to get linked to an experienced attorney and learn about your legal options for filing an Ethicon Physiomesh lawsuit.
FDA Approval Without Clinical Trials
Hernia mesh is not subject to rigorous testing or clinical trials like most products are, thanks to the 510(k) clearance program.
The clearance makes it possible for similar items already available on the market to obtain approval more promptly. Physiomesh received FDA approval in March 2010 in line with this program.
In May 2016, only six years later, Ethicon and Johnson & Johnson, the product’s mother company, released an emergency field safety alert to withdraw Physiomesh from the market because of increased hernia recurrence rates and other issues.
The company could not pinpoint a specific problem but acknowledged that the issues were probably tied to certain aspects of the device.
For this reason, you may be eligible to bring an Ethicon Physiomesh lawsuit to seek compensation for your suffering, medical costs, and other losses.
Studies Identify Physiomesh Dangers
In a study published by the Surgical Endoscopy journal in March 2016, researchers compared Bard Davol’s Ventralight mesh to Physiomesh.
These researchers had to suspend the study after six months because 20% of patients who got the Physiomesh patch suffered hernia recurrence and greater rates of pain.
Another research from June 2016 found that regardless of how Physiomesh was inserted, individuals reported hernia recurrence.
A longitudinal study on the capacity of mesh devices to adapt in the abdominal wall found that compared to other mesh devices, Physiomesh had much lower rates of integration. It also had higher rates mesh fracture rates.
What We Can Expect in the Ethicon Physiomesh Lawsuits
The ring concerns with the Kugel Mesh lawsuits can help understand the direction of Ethicon Physiomesh cases.
Two pieces of mesh encircle a flexible plastic ring to make the Kugel mesh patch. A surgeon makes a tiny incision, then folds and applies the mesh patch to the hernia location.
The patch becomes flat as the loosened ring springs to its original shape. The mesh-like material acts as the substrate, permitting the patient’s tissue to grow and help the hernia heal.
The Kugel mesh patch, like the Ethicon Physiomesh, was prone to breaking, resulting in persistent intestinal fistula and bowel perforations. These severe conditions put the health of those with hernia patches at risk.
The major issue with the Kugel hernia patch is that plastic can break and tear a patient’s tissue and internal organs. In most cases, the memory recoil ring would crack when being inserted.
Bowel perforations or ruptures and chronic intestinal fistulas were the most frequent complications associated with a Kugel recoil ring failure.
Unfortunately, the motive behind this is the idea of increasing market share by any means possible without considering safety.
What Is the Average Settlement Value of an Ethicon Physiomesh Lawsuit?
We cannot tell how much the average settlement in the Ethicon Physiomesh lawsuit will be. However, the odds have always favored a global settlement where most claims settle without the plaintiffs having to go to trial.
What is known is that the Kugel hernia mesh lawsuits had an average payout of roughly $70,000. The consensus is that the Ethicon Physiomesh cases may have slightly higher average settlement values.
Get a Lawyer for Your Ethicon Physiomesh Lawsuit
Several people have taken legal action against Ethicon, alleging that the device’s flawed design is exceedingly risky, has resulted in severe harm, and prompted additional revision procedures.
Legal Giant’s partner attorneys are actively looking into claims on behalf of people who experienced negative outcomes following hernia repair surgery.
You might be eligible to bring an Ethicon Physiomesh lawsuit to get compensation for the harm you have endured.
Contact us for a free consultation to learn your legal options.
