Washington, DC Unsafe Medical Device Lawyer

What Are Common Examples of Defective Medical Devices?

Virtually any medical device may contain serious design and/or manufacturing defects. Victims of device failure may require additional surgeries or treatments as a result. In some cases, a medical device failure may cause severe internal injuries, which may be fatal. While the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recalls dozens of dangerous products each year, many unsafe devices remain in the marketplace, harming patients nationwide.

You may be able to file a product liability lawsuit for any kind of flawed medical device, depending on the circumstances. Some common examples of medical products that historically have contained flaws include:

• Joint replacement implants. Recently, several companies have issued recalls for defective hip and knee implants. These implants may fail or come loose, causing infection and other complications. This often forces recipients to undergo difficult and painful second replacement surgeries. For example, DePuy, Stryker, Zimmer, Biomet, and Smith & Nephew all recalled defective knee and hip replacement devices.
• Pacemakers. A pacemaker treats irregular heartbeats, which is a potentially fatal condition. Defective pacemakers may cause heart attacks or fail to stop irregular rhythms. In some cases, these problems can cause complications like pacemaker syndrome, characterized by dizziness, palpitations, difficulty breathing, and constant twitching of chest or abdominal muscles. Some companies, such as Medtronic, have recalled pacemakers for dangerous defects.
• Surgical mesh. Several companies have issued medical device recalls for hernia mesh and transvaginal mesh. Defective meshes may migrate, break and/or cause serious infection. Complications from bladder slings and other mesh products can cause implant failure and symptoms, including serious pain.
• Surgical equipment. Recently, both the da Vinci surgical robot and the 3M bair hugger surgical blanket were subject to recalls. Although these are not implants, defects in surgical equipment also cause serious injuries to patients.
• IVC filters. Inferior vena cava (IVC) filters may prevent blood clots from migrating to patients’ hearts. However, filters are prone to breakage, and fragments may pierce blood vessels or organs, causing potentially catastrophic injury.
• IUDs. Intrauterine devices (IUDs) are implants that provide birth control. However, defective IUDs may migrate, perforate organs, or fail to prevent pregnancy.
• Medication. Defective drugs may fail to work as they should or cause dangerous side effects.
• Lap bands. Used to treat morbid obesity, defective gastric lap bands may cause severe complications, vomiting, and infection.
• Defibrillators. A defective automated external defibrillator (AED) may fail to work or cause electrocution injuries. Some companies, such as Cardiac Science, have recently issued AED recalls for these reasons.