A couple from Florida has filed a lawsuit against C.R. Bard, a medical device manufacturer, accusing the company of manufacturing and marketing defective hernia mesh, the Florida Record reports. In their federal complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida, the couple claims to have suffered severe injuries and financial losses due to Bard’s Ventralex Hernia Patch, a synthetic polypropylene mesh product used to repair hernias during surgery.

Florida Family Says Ventralex Mesh Caused Them To Suffer Severe Damages

The couple, both of whom say they suffered severe damages due to Bard’s mesh, claim the company advertised its Ventralex products as “safe” and unable to cause harm. In reality, they allege, the mesh product’s polypropylene material is linked to a wide range of “known adverse health consequences,” including chronic pain, inflammation, nerve damage and an increased risk of infection.

Man Claims He Suffered Intense Pain & Abdominal Deformity After Alleged Mesh Injuries

One plaintiff, the husband, says he learned about these risks first-hand after receiving a Ventralex mesh himself. In his lawsuit, the man claims to have suffered intense pain and abdominal deformities almost immediately after the mesh was implanted.

An avid outdoorsman, the plaintiff says that he is no longer able to enjoy his favorite pastimes, from fishing to cycling, due to the pain he experiences every day.

Wife Demands Financial Compensation For “Loss Of Consortium”

In describing her own alleged damages, the man’s wife alleges that her “emotional and physical relationship with her husband have suffered as a direct result of [her husband’s] injuries from these defective products.” She is seeking compensation to make up for her “loss of consortium and society with her husband.” Together, the couple is asking for over $75,000 in damages.

Bard Polypropylene Mesh Lawsuits

Dozens of other patients have filed their own hernia mesh lawsuits against Bard, a company founded in Providence, Rhode Island but now headquartered in New Jersey.

Plaintiffs Request Coordination As MDL For C.R. Bard’s Polypropylene Meshes

At this moment, these lawsuits, most of which involve the company’s Ventralex line of mesh patches, are scattered in various federal and state courts across the country.

On April 10, 2018, plaintiffs in 15 of these cases asked the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation (JPML) to create a new centralized docket for these mesh cases pending in federal courts.

Petition Suggests Ohio, Missouri For Centralization

While their petition has not yet been approved, the plaintiffs’ request could greatly increase the pace of litigation. If approved, all federally-filed hernia mesh lawsuits against C.R. Bard, Inc. and its Davol, Inc. subsidiary involving polypropylene meshes it manufactured would be transferred to a single court for coordinated pre-trial proceedings. In their petition, these plaintiffs suggest either the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio or the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Missouri as potential jurisdictions for centralization.

Importantly, the plaintiffs have excluded from their request any claims involving Bard’s Kugel or Composix mesh patches. Kugel-branded products were the subject of a Multidistrict Litigation (MDL) that closed after several trials and a round of settlements in 2017. Excluding Kugel and Composix products, the plaintiffs suggest that the new MDL, if created, should cover all cases related to Bard’s polypropylene mesh patches.

Bard Supports MDL, Endorses New York, New Jersey For Jurisdiction

In a response filed with the JPML on May 3, 2018, Bard supported the idea of centralization and endorsed the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York and the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey as its preferred jurisdictions. However, the company disputes the plaintiffs’ attempt to “carve out” certain products from the proposed MDL, calling the exclusion of Kugel and Composix mesh patches “arbitrary.”