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Failure to Warn is the Issue for Morcellator Lawyers

An outright ban on the use of power morcellators for gynecological procedures has not yet been issued by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) despite the growing number of complaints that it allegedly increased the risk of uterine cancer in some patients. This is considered a smart move by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, which stand by their professed opinion that the device has its uses in gynecologic surgical procedures.

Power morcellators are medical devices that are designed for use in minimally-invasive procedures such as the removal of benign growths or routine hysterectomies. The device essentially cuts or pulverizes the targeted tissue which can then be extracted through the small incision in the abdomen where the morcellator was inserted.

The issue with power morcellators is that they apparently “wake up” dormant cancer cells in the uterus of at-risk patients when some of the pulverized tissue is left in the body. About two dozen women who underwent routine surgery with the use of power morcellators came out with cancer, and they are claiming that it had been caused by the device. Statistics show that about 1 in 350 women that were morcellated developed cancer shortly after their procedures.

They filed lawsuits in the 2nd quarter of 2014 against the device manufacturers, including Ethicon Inc., a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, and more are expected in the coming months. The growing number of complaints prompted the FDA to start an investigation into the purported link between power morcellators and uterine cancer. Some physicians insist that despite these developments, morcellators may still be safely used in younger patients who have no family history of uterine cancer.

Causation is not yet proven in the case of morcellators and uterine cancer, but it certainly seems to be indicated. If you suspect that you may have developed cancer because of power morcellators, you may be right, and may be eligible for compensation. Choose the best among the morcellator lawyers in your area for a consultation to find out more about it.

Product Liability for Defective Drugs and Medical Devices

The saying that the cure is worse than the disease or similar has been used for centuries. This is mostly because before the era of modern medical principles, many cures and therapies killed off or at least grievously injured the patients.

Back in the day, people with ailments or certain needs would go to the apothecary to be dosed with evil-smelling concoctions or fitted with mysterious gadgets. It was pretty much trial-and-error, and the treatments that killed off more than they cured were eventually removed from the lists. A good example is arsenic, which in low doses was used as a stimulant in the 18th century. However, arsenic has a cumulative effect, and will eventually kill the user. In toxic doses, of course, arsenic will kill within a short period of ingestion.

Today, any drug company that uses arsenic is liable to get sued because of its known toxic effects. The standards of care are much higher now because there is no reason why a drug company will not know the long-term effects of any drug or medical device they sell to the public. The product liability for defective drugs or medical devices that is widely introduced into the market can ring up a pretty hefty bill in personal injury lawsuits.

That is precisely what happened to the manufacturers and distributors of the birth-control device NuvaRing and the kidney cleansing solution Granuflo used in dialysis. They are being sued by thousands of their clients for not giving adequate warning about the potential harmful side-effects with their use.

NuvaRing users claim that use of the once-a-month contraceptive significantly increased formation of blood clots. An article in the website of Texas law firm Williams Kherkher about NuvaRing observes that Merck & Co. should be made to pay for their negligence in protecting the health of their clients. Those suing Granuflo manufacturer Fresenius Medical Care for failure to warn. In a separate article on Granuflo, lawyers at Williams Kherkher explain that the company failed to advise physicians that subscribing excessive bicarbonate to their patients can lead to cardiac arrest and other heart problem.

If you or someone close to you has found that the cure is worse than the disease, you should know that you don’t have to pay the consequences of a defective drug or medical devices by yourself. Stand up and take action by consulting with a product liability lawyer specializing in the product or device that has caused you injury.