IVC Filter Complications Lawyer Washington DC
Inferior vena cava (IVC) filters are small, cage-like devices that keep blood clots from reaching the heart and lungs. Ever since IVC filters were introduced to mainstream medicine in the ‘70s, IVC filter insertion has increased dramatically. Filters made by manufacturer C.R. Bard have been linked to hundreds of patient injuries and dozens of deaths. The complications have prompted lawsuits against IVC filter manufacturers.
There is long-documented evidence of filter problems. From 2005 to 2010, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) received nearly 1,000 adverse event reports for issues involving IVC filters, including device breakage, device migration, puncture of the inferior vena cava and filter fracture, detachment of device components, and filter perforated vein or organ.
Many newer IVC filter models have been designed to be removed once a doctor clears the patient, however complications can arise in the retrieval of the device. The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA)’s study of 952 patients with IVC filters revealed that about 2% of device retrievals failed, for the following reasons: a filter was imbedded in the inferior vena cava, the filter was protruding through a blood vessel, an abnormal filter position, and a blood clot inside the filter.
Patients’ IVC filter complications and injuries have prompted lawsuits filed by lawyers all over the country against device makers. Plaintiffs have claimed that the IVC filters were defective and that they were not properly warned about potential health risks.
Manufacturers of IVC filters include Cook Medical, R. Bard, Cordis Corporation, ALN Implants Chirurgicaux, Rafael Medical Technologies, Rex Medical, Crux Biomedical, Braun Medical, Boston Scientific, Johnson & Johnson, Volcano Corporation. Most of the IVC Filter lawsuits have been filed against manufacturers C.R. Bard and Cook Medical. The primary devices named in these lawsuits are Bard Recovery, Bard G2 and G2 Express, Cook Celect, Cook Günther Tulip,
According to NBC News’ investigation, dozens of deaths and hundreds of non-fatal complications are linked to the Bard Recovery and G2 filters. The investigation alleged that Bard knew about problems with the devices but kept them on the market and put thousands of patients at risk when they allegedly continued to see the faulty G2 and Recovery filters.
Since IVC filters are placed in a vein that carries blood to the heart and lungs, metal filter pieces that break off can puncture that vein or end up embedded in those organs. The entire filter can also dislodge from the implant site and wreak havoc on the vascular system.
According to NBC News, Dodi Froehlich almost died after a filter piece broke off and pierced her heart, which required open heart surgery. Gloria Adams’ IVC filter, dislodged by a blood clot, punctured her heart and killed her.
LAWSUITS
In a lawsuit filed against C.R. Bard (Vlasvich et al v. Bard Peripheral Vascular, No. 1:2013cv07817), the plaintiff, who has a Bard G2 IVC filter, claims she underwent a CT scan that showed metallic spokes had broken off of the filter and lodged in the right ventricle of the heart and in her right lung. The patient underwent two surgeries to remove the metal pieces, but the pieces could not be successfully removed from her lungs and are permanently lodged there.
In a IVC lawsuit against Boston Scientific (Ratliff v. Boston Scientific Corporation, No. 2:2012cv02049), lawyers allege that the plaintiff’s IVC filter broke free of the implantation site and pierced the inferior vena cava suffered a medical emergency and as a result the plaintiff died while at a roadside rest area.
On March 30, 2018, a jury in Phoenix found IVC filter manufacturer Bard 80 percent responsible for a woman’s injuries after she claimed an IVC filter fractured in her body. The company was ordered to pay her $3.6 million in compensatory and punitive damages.
The case was the first bellwether for the Multidistrict litigation (MDL) in Arizona against Bard. Bellwethers can help lawyers predict the verdicts of cases with similar.
In relation to IVC filter complications, MDL lawsuits have formed in Indiana and Arizona federal courts. MDLs consolidate similar types of cases for pretrial proceedings but allow plaintiffs to maintain individual lawsuits.
A lawsuit against an IVC filter manufacturer could provide compensation for Medical expenses, lost wages, impaired earning ability, pain and suffering, emotional anguish, disfigurement/disability/impairment, loss of ability to lead a normal life/Loss of enjoyment of life, loss of services, support and society (in the case of a wrongful death)
If you are in the DC area and are looking to file a lawsuit for any damages stemming from IVC filter complications you can reach us at a 24/7 live phone answering. So, if you need a DC lawyer who handles injury lawsuits contact Cohen & Cohen, our IVC Filter Complications Lawyer Washington DC.
