Bard, Doctor Ordered to Pay $5.5 Million Over Implant

Jurors in state court in Bakersfield, California, concluded July 20 that Christine Scott and her husband deserved the damage award because of injuries caused by Bard’s Avaulta Plus vaginal implant, Elaine Houghton, one of the couple’s lawyers, said in a phone interview yesterday.

The panel found Bard officials were negligent in their handling of the devices, used to treat pelvic organs that bulge, or prolapse, or to deal with incontinence, she said.

“They seemed to focus on evidence we produced showing that Bard didn’t properly test the product before putting it on the market,” Houghton said. The lawyer said she asked jurors to consider awarding as much as $11 million in damages to the couple over the implant.

The case is the first to go to trial among hundreds of lawsuits alleging that implants made by Murray Hill, New Jersey- based Bard, Boston Scientific Corp. (BSX) (BSX) and other companies caused organ damage. The decision comes more than a month after Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) (JNJ)’s Ethicon unit announced it would stop selling four lines of vaginal mesh devices.

In its verdict, the California jury found Bard was 60 percent at fault for Scott’s injuries while Dr. Tillakarasi Kannappan, who surgically implanted the device in 2008, was responsible for the other 40 percent of the liability, according a copy of the verdict sheet filed with the court.

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Wexler Wallace represents a number of women who have suffered complications from implanted surgical mesh. If you or a loved one suffered complications after use of Transvaginal Surgical Mesh to treat Pelvic Organ Prolapse or Stress Urinary Incontinence, please contact us or fill out our online form.