JACKSONVILLE — A St. Johns County couple is suing the manufacturer of surgery products for allegedly implanting defective devices.
In a lawsuit filed April 23 in U.S District Court for the Middle District of Florida, David and Cynthia Israel accused C.R. Bard Inc. and its subsidiary Davol Inc. of surgically implanting the devices into the body of 69-year-old David H. Israel who was injured as a result. Israel reportedly suffered from severe pain and abdominal deformity.
The devices at issue are Ventralex Hernia Patch and CapSure Permanent Fixation System 30Tack, which are used in hernia repair surgeries.
Before the surgery, Israel reportedly enjoyed an active lifestyle of cycling, exercising, fishing and gardening. But he can no longer participate in the activities he enjoys because of decreased energy, pain and the physical deformity to his abdomen, the suit said.
The suit alleges that his wife, Cynthia M. Israel, “suffered a loss of consortium and society with her husband.”
“Mrs. Israel’s emotional and physical relationship with her husband have suffered as a direct result of Mr. Israel’s injuries from these defective products,” the complaint said.
The defendants publicly stated that implanting the hernia mesh “was safe and could not cause harm,” according to the complaint, But the lawsuit notes that the patch is made of polypropylene, a petroleum-based plastic with “known adverse health consequences,” which include mesh erosion, infection, chronic pain, abscesses, inflammation, organ perforation, bleeding, nerve damage and recurrent hernias. It further states that the Polypropylene Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) indicates that the material shouldn’t be used in the human body.
“Defendants’ mesh products have high failure, injury, and complication rates, fail to perform as intended, require additional operations, and specifically have caused injuries to Mr. Israel,” the complaint said.
The Israels are asking for more than $75,000 in damages.