Have you experienced injuries or complications due to a potentially defective or dangerous medical device? Companies that manufacture and market medical devices have a legal obligation to ensure the safety of their products. Corporations that make and sell dangerous medical devices should compensate patients harmed by them.
Proving your medical device’s dangerous or defective nature may involve finding and presenting complex evidence. Manufacturers will fight hard to avoid liability for the harm their defective medical devices cause. You need to turn to a medical device recall lawyer from Sumner Law Group, LLC, to help you stand up to big corporations to demand accountability and justice.
Contact Sumner Law Group, LLC, for a free initial case evaluation to learn more about how a defective medical device lawyer in St. Louis can take on your claim and pursue the money you deserve for the harm caused by a defective device. The consultation is free, confidential, and comes with no further obligations on your part.
What Medical Device Recalls Mean
When the FDA issues a medical device recall, either the device is removed from the market, or it is returned for repairs. Many medical device recalls occur voluntarily, with the manufacturer choosing to remove and repair or replace patients’ defective medical devices.
In some cases, the FDA may issue a mandatory order to a manufacturer, which directs the manufacturer and any distributors to stop selling a defective medical device and notifies healthcare providers and patients of the defective device. When the FDA issues a mandatory order, the manufacturer can request a regulatory hearing to request the FDA amend, modify, or vacate the order. The FDA can also amend its mandatory order to require a device recall.
Manufacturers must also notify the FDA whenever they correct or remove a medical device to reduce risk to a patient’s health or to remedy a violation of FDA regulations, even if an event occurred due to user error.
Types of Defective Medical Devices
A few common examples of defective medical devices include:
- Artificial hips and knees
- Transvaginal mesh
- Stents
- Pacemakers
- IVC blood clot filters
- Surgical robots
- Intrauterine birth control devices
- Power morcellators
- Insulin pumps
- CPAP and BiPAP machines
Consequences of Dangerous Medical Devices
Dangerous and defective medical devices pose a significant risk of patient injury and complications. For example, defective artificial joint replacements frequently wear down more quickly than intended, causing patients to suffer pain and limited mobility when the artificial joint fails and requires additional surgeries to fix or replace the joint.
Other defective medical implants, including stents, pelvic mesh, and intrauterine devices, risk falling out of place and perforating or damaging organs and tissues. This damage can cause severe pain and often requires surgery to fix the damage or treat life-threatening complications such as sepsis.
Who Is Liable for a Defective Medical Device?
In a defective medical device claim, any party in the chain of commerce that brought the device to market may have liability for the harm you’ve suffered. Examples of parties you might file a defective medical device claim against include:
- The company that designed the device
- The company that manufactured the device or that manufactured a defective component in the device
- The company that marketed and sold the device
- An importer that brought the device into the U.S. for sale
- The surgeon who implanted the device
- The hospital or other health facility where it was implanted
Legal Representation for Injuries Caused by Defective Medical Devices
Proving a medical device’s dangerous or defective nature requires a carefully crafted legal case. A St. Louis medical device injury attorney from Sumner Law Group, LLC, can prepare a compelling and persuasive legal argument. We’ll work to hold manufacturers and other liable parties accountable for harming you.
While you recover from the injuries or complications you’ve suffered, let our firm handle the details of your case, including:
- Thoroughly investigating your claims to secure evidence for your legal case, including your medical records, treating provider notices, and your doctors’ testimony.
- Working with medical and engineering experts to craft persuasive opinion reports and testimony. The testimony can explain the defective or dangerous nature of your medical device and establish what future medical care you may need and permanent disabilities or complications you may suffer.
- Documenting your injuries and losses, including lost wages, medical expenses, and pain and suffering.
- Identifying the parties you can hold liable for your injuries and losses.
- Preparing and sending demand letters to the manufacturers and other liable parties.
- Aggressively negotiating on your behalf to obtain a settlement that pays you fair compensation.
- Filing a lawsuit or representing you in a mass tort or multi-district litigation to fight for the financial recovery and justice you deserve.
Statute of Limitations for Defective Medical Devices in St. Louis
Under Missouri’s statute of limitations, you have five years from the date you discover the injury or medical harm caused by a defective medical device to file a lawsuit against the device’s manufacturers and other liable parties. Filing a lawsuit after the limitations period expires risks having your case dismissed by the court. If that happens, you lose your right to recover compensation for your injuries and losses through the court system.
Due to the deadline for filing your defective medical device claim, you should talk to our St. Louis medical device injury lawyers as soon as possible. We stand ready to start preparing your case to file your claims before the limitations period runs out.
Talk to Our St. Louis Defective Medical Device Lawyers Today
If you’ve suffered injuries or medical complications due to a defective medical device, get the legal advice and advocacy you need. Let us demand accountability and financial recovery for you from medical device manufacturers.
Contact the Sumner Law Group, LLC, today for a free, no-obligation consultation. You can discuss your legal options with a knowledgeable defective medical device attorney in St. Louis. Let us help you secure compensation and justice for the harm and losses you’ve endured.
