Attorneys claim several hernia mesh devices were not properly tested before they were marketed and distributed as safe medical instruments.

The companies currently face thousands of pending hernia mesh injury lawsuits. If you have had surgery to treat a hernia using a device and you experience any signs or symptoms of recurrence of the hernia, please consult with a medical and legal expert. The Lyon Firm has experience litigating cases against medical device manufacturers.

Attorneys contend that some hernia mesh devices are not properly tested before they are distributed to the public as safe products. Device companies like Gore, Aspide, Ethicon, Bard, Covidien and Atrium have settled hundreds of lawsuits and currently face countless more injury claims.

If you are unsure about the mesh manufacturer and product used in your surgery and have questions about your hernia repair, contact your Ohio surgeon to obtain medical records. Contact a Cincinnati hernia mesh lawyer to discuss potential hernia mesh injury lawsuits and settlement.

• Gore DualMesh
• Aspide Surgimesh
• Ethicon
• Physiomesh
• Proceed
• Prolene
• Covidien 
• Parietex
• Parietene
• Permacol
• Surgipro
• Atrium
• C-Qur
• ProLoop
• Bard/ Davol
• Visilex
• Composix
• Marlex
• Ventralight
• Spermatex
• 3D Max
• Sepramesh
• PerFix Plug
• Ventralex
• Kugel

Regardless of treatment, hernias have a high rate of recurrence, and surgeons often use surgical mesh to strengthen the hernia repair recurrence rate. The use of meshes is thought to reduce dramatically the incidence of hernia recurrence.

However, up to 50 percent of hernias may reoccur with an implanted device. This is commonly due to inadequate fixation during the original operation or shrinkage of the mesh. Light-weight meshes may have a higher risk due to their increased flexibility and movement.

Two-thirds of recurrences occur after three years. It is not clear if the type of mesh used has any effect on durability. All mesh products appear equally limited in effectiveness.

• Inguinal: occurs in the inner groin. The most common of abdominal hernias. Sometimes muscles that attach to the pelvis leave a weakened area and if there is a stress placed on that area, the weakened tissues can allow a portion of small bowel to slide through that opening, causing pain and producing a bulge. Inguinal hernias are more likely to occur in men.
• Femoral: occurs in the upper thigh/outer groin. Femoral hernias tend to occur more frequently in women.
• Incisional: occurs through an incision or scar in the abdomen. Incisional hernias occur as a complication of abdominal surgery, where the abdominal muscles are cut to allow the surgeon to enter the abdominal cavity to operate.
• Ventral: occurs in the general abdominal/ventral wall
• Umbilical: occurs at the belly button and are very common in newborns and often do not need treatment unless complications occur. Some umbilical hernias enlarge and may require repair later in life.
• Hiatal: occurs inside the abdomen, along the upper stomach/diaphragm
• Obturator: the least common hernia of the pelvic floor, mostly found in women who have had multiple pregnancies or who have lost significant weight.

Repair of hernias are done by either suture repair or prosthetic mesh repair. The latter is associated with a lower recurrence rate but a higher incidence of complications. The most serious complication is the development of fistula.

Fistula is a late complication of prosthetic mesh repair and is usually due to chronic erosion of bowel by mesh placed in direct contact with intestinal loops both in open and laparoscopic repairs. Symptoms of fistulas may include the following:

•  Persistent pain—throbbing and worse when sitting down.
  •    Skin irritation around the anus, including swelling, redness and tenderness.
  •    Discharge of pus or blood.
  •    Constipation or pain associated with bowel movements.
  •    Fever

Ohio Definition of Defective

Under Ohio law, a medical device is  defective if it is unreasonably dangerous for its intended use. A legal cause of action can be based on several types of medical device product defects. Most jurisdictions a version of one or more of these cause of actions. 

(1)  Manufacturing/ Construction Defect of the medical device:

(2) Defective design and/or formulation of the medical device:

(3) Failure to warn or inadequate warning or instruction associated with the medical device:

(4) Misrepresentation on the Safety or Efficacy of the Medical Device:

(5) Fraud Related to the Safety or Efficacy of the Medical Device

(6) Negligent Distribution or Testing of the Medical Device