Question 1

Do all hernia surgeries require mesh?

Accepted Answer

No. In fact, non- mesh hernia repair surgeries were commonplace for over 100 year. However, many surgeons in those days could not properly perform the non-mesh surgery and as a result recurrence was high, over 20 percent. “Since the 1980s, there has been an increase in mesh-based hernia repairs—by 2000, non-mesh repairs represented less than 10% of groin hernia repair techniques.” FDA

However, “In the right patients, some groin hernias can be repaired without mesh and still have acceptable success rates.” Stonybrook medicine “In the right patients, some groin hernias can be repaired without mesh and still have acceptable success rates. Additionally, some small hernias at the belly button can be repaired with suture alone. Most repairs, though, do utilize prosthetic mesh to achieve a successful repair.” Id.

According to the FDA, hernia surgeries could be either Laparoscopic or Open repair. There are non-mesh alternatives for both laparscopic and open repair.

Surgical

Laparoscopic– The surgeon makes several small incisions in the abdomen that allow surgical tools into the openings to repair the hernia. Laparoscopic surgery can be performed with or without surgical mesh.
Open Repair– The surgeon makes an incision near the hernia and the weak muscle area is repaired. Open repair can be done with or without surgical mesh. Open repair that uses sutures without mesh is referred to as primary closure. Primary closure is used to repair inguinal hernias in infants, small hernias, strangulated or infected hernias. (Source FDA)

There is also natural tissue hernia repair

The Shouldice Hernia Hospital in Ontario Canada, for example, does not implant hernia mesh in any hernia surgery it performs Instead, Shouldice Hernia Hospital uses natural tissue procedure without utilizing hernia mesh. Shouldice’s procedure relies upon a patient’s own natural tissue to repair the hernia as opposed to using a mesh to cover the affected area. The hospital’s operating theory is only to use mesh as a last possible resort in the rare instance where the patient’s surrounding tissue is not strong enough to support fixing the hernia. In only a handful of cases, the patient’s tissue is heavily damaged or weakened or the hernia is simply too large to fix without mesh. The hospital will also consider the use of the mesh to repair hernia that have recurred several times. However, Shouldice operates from the premise that mesh is not the first option for the best possible surgical outcome given the problems that have arisen from the use of hernia mesh. In fact, Shouldice’s founding occurred over 10 years before hernia mesh began to be used, and they never adopted the practice. Shouldice will not use mesh in a direct inguinal hernia or an indirect inguinal hernia repair. The hospital will almost always administer patients a full IV during surgery for patients to be as comfortable as possible during the procedure.

Dr. Michael Reinhorn of Boston Hernia for example, began “offering no mesh shouldice repair in 2015.” Boston hernia’s website indicated,” While we expect the long-term outcomes of the Shouldice repair to reveal a higher rate of hernia recurrence, this repair is a reasonable alternative for some patients.” Id.

Question 2

Do I qualify for hernia mesh lawsuit?

Accepted Answer

If your hernia mesh is made of polypropylene or synthetic material such as polyester and you have suffered complications caused by the hernia mesh you probably qualify to file a hernia mesh lawsuit. The hernia mesh lawsuit must be filed within the applicable state statute of limitations. The hernia mesh complications may include:

mesh migration,
infection,
adhesion to organs,
bowel obstruction,
organ perforation,
pain and suffering or
hernia recurrence

If the mesh was manufactured by C.R. Bard or Davol Inc. currently owned by Becton Dickinson (BD) you may get an extended statute of limitations which could be well over 10 to 20 years.

A hernia mesh recall is not required in order to file a hernia mesh lawsuit. A revision surgery is also not required to file a hernia mesh lawsuit.

Question 3

How do I know what hernia mesh I have?

Accepted Answer

You need to contact your hernia mesh surgeon and ask which hernia mesh medical device was implanted. You can request your medical records and surgical records from the hospital where the surgery occurred. Send a medical authorization to disclose protected health information (release of medical records) pursuant to HIPAA privacy regulations. (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996)

Get a medical authorization to disclose protected health information

Question 4

Do you feel hernia mesh?

Accepted Answer

Mesh is placed on the outside of the abdominal wall in traditional hernia surgery…Because it is placed closer to the surface of the body, many patients complain that they can feel hernia mesh after surgery. There are nerves along the outside of the abdominal wall that can occasionally get entrapped in the mesh in that area, which can cause chronic pain and cause patients to feel hernia mesh after surgery. People who have a mesh plug used to repair their hernias often feel the mesh plug.  While it's not always painful, some chronic pain issues al likely due to the shape and location of the mesh plug.'

Question 5

How long after hernia surgery will the pain go away?

Accepted Answer

After an inguinal hernia mesh surgery, you would expect that the pain would subside and go away. For many people, the pain is relieved after the surgical mesh is implanted. For those patients, the pain subsides after a few weeks However, some victims end up with severe chronic pain in their groin area This debilitating pain can go on for months or even years. This chronic pain can interfere with day to day functioning such as sitting or walking. Pain after a mesh surgery could be caused by: The mesh leads to inflammation or irritation which causes pain. There are nerves in a person's abdomen. A nerve getting entangled or ensnared in the mesh can cause pain.

Question 6

How long do hernia mesh cases take?

Accepted Answer

A hernia mesh lawsuit could take up to 5 years or even longer. It is impossible to predict how long it will take for a mesh victim to be compensated via settlement/ jury verdict or for the victim’s case to be decided. In the beginning stages, the surgical mesh law firm must obtain medical records, review them and assess the case. Once a hernia mesh lawsuit is filed, it could take several years before the cause of action is scheduled for a trial. After the trial, if the victim prevails, the mesh manufacturer could file an appeal. The appellate process could add additional years onto the process.

If the mesh lawsuit is part of multidistrict litigation, there are often bellwether trials as well as a long discovery process. The discover process is when tens of thousands of documents and records are produced.

If there is a hernia mesh settlement accepted by the surgical mesh victim, the process is short- circuited and the victim is compensated. A hernia settlement could occur at anytime during the mesh lawsuit. If the lawsuit is part of a consolidated multidistrict litigation, the mesh manufacturer may wait 2 to 3 years so that the vast majority of potential claims are filed before reaching a global settlement of pending claims. The mesh manufacturers may wait until there have been some bellwether trials to see which way the wind is blowing. They hope to win one or more bellwether trials to get leverage against the victim’s hernia mesh law firms.

Question 7

How much compensation for hernia mesh?

Accepted Answer

Global settlements of consolidated multidistrict product liability litigation (MDL)cases have been notoriously unfair to surgical mesh victims. Multidistrict litigation is when there are hundreds or thousands of cases pending in Federal Courts and the Cases are consolidated for pretrial and settlement purposes. There has only been one large scale, global hernia mesh settlement. As is exemplified by the infamous Kugel hernia mesh MDL in Rhode Island Federal Court, the mesh companies throw out a big number to globally settle thousands of claims. In 2011, Bard / Davol paid 184 million to over 2600 mesh victims to settle the vast majority of the Composix Kugel hernia mesh patch Multidistrict litigation cases pending in Rhode Island Federal Court. 184 million certainly seems like a lot of money, but when it is divided 2600 ways it is not enough.

The average victim who accepted the Kugel mesh MDL settlement walked away with mere peanuts, $70,000. After payment of costs and attorney’s fees and in some cases medical liens, the victims didn’t get much money. Victims with average or smaller claims had no viable option but to accept the settlement. Other mesh victims with larger claims, who could find a mesh law firm to pursue a surgical mesh trial, may have opted out of accepting the paltry sum and sought an individual jury trial.

The Bard Kugel mesh settlement was a prime example of how mesh victim’s get screwed and the hernia mesh lawyers make out like bandits. Thankfully, individual victims can refuse to accept a global MDL settlement. However, only claimants with large claims can legitimately refuse the global settlement. Only litigants, who have lucrative claims, with lawyers willing to pursue an expensive jury trial on the merits can opt out of the global settlement. Individual mesh jury trials are notoriously expensive. These individual lawsuits can be prohibitable expensive. Often, hernia mesh law firms refuse to go ahead with a mesh jury trial and withdraw representation of claimants who do not accept the global mesh settlement

MDL’s are double edged swords because they are often the only way that victims can afford to pursue their surgical mesh claims in Court. Without MDLs, victims with low or moderate amounts of damages may be effectively barred from the court room steps.

If a victim has a case worth over a million dollars, the victim should consider hiring one of the best hernia mesh lawyers to file an individual case in State Court. A lawsuit in State Court prevents the forced transfer of a case in Federal Court into an MDL.

Question 8

What are common side effects and complications of a hernia mesh surgery?

Accepted Answer

Pain, Bowel obstruction, Mesh migration, Mesh contraction, Infections, Adhesion o organs, Fistula, Organ perforation, Seroma, Mesh rejection, Hernia recurrence

Question 9

Will a Hernia Mesh implantation negatively affect Sexual relations?

Accepted Answer

In many cases, a victim's sex life may improve after hernia mesh is implanted. In many instances a surgical mesh victim has to wait until pain subsides until they can engage in sexual activity. The best practice is to consult with your surgeon when you are able to resume sexual activity.

Question 10

How long after a hernia mesh is implanted until complications occur?

Accepted Answer

Complications may commence immediately after surgery. Mesh can lead to immediate infection and other complications. Attorneys are arguing that the synthetic material in the vast majority of the mesh is inherently dangerous to the human body and can lead to infections and side effects. Some victims endure HERNIA MESH PROBLEMS YEARS LATER. WHETHER A VICTIM WILL HAVE HERNIA MESH PAIN YEARS LATER IS VERY CASE SPECIFIC.

Question 11

What is a Hernia?

Accepted Answer

A hernia occurs when an organ or tissue bulges through an abnormal opening. For example, if a part of your intestine or your bladder pokes through the intestinal wall, that's a hernia. There are several different types of hernias. They're classified based on where they happen in the body and how they occur. One type of hernia is an incisional hernia. It occurs because of a cut or a scar in the abdomen. This can be a complication that occurs because of a cut during surgery. When this type of hernia occurs, surgeons often turn to a mesh product to support the organ.

Question 12

Has my hernia mesh been recalled?

Accepted Answer

Many victims wrongly believe that a hernia mesh recall is required to file a hernia mesh lawsuit. This is a myth. There are currently thousands of lawsuits pending for mesh that is not currently recalled and was never recalled. There have been some recalls of hernia mesh in the past issued by the FDA for various reasons. A recall cannot hurt your lawsuit and may help to a certain extent. Ethicon Physiomesh was not recalled by Johnson and Johnson. Johnson and Johnson voluntarily removed Physiomesh from the market. In Canada and some other countries Physiomesh was recalled.

Question 13

Is there a deadline or statute of limitations to file a hernia mesh lawsuit?

Accepted Answer

There are numerous factors that go into determining the statute of limitations to file a hernia mesh lawsuit. The deadline may depend on when the victim discovered that the mesh was causing complications. Another important fact is the residence of the victim and where the mesh lawsuit is taking place. The jurisdiction where the case is filed can be an important factor . Also, where the location of the hospital where the mesh was implanted could be important. In some circumstances a victim may be entitled to an extended statute of limitation. Some states have a statute of repose. A statute of repose is a deadline in which a victim cannot file a hernia mesh lawsuit after a certain amount of years since the date of the surgery no matter when the complications commenced. It is imperative that you speak to a top hernia mesh law firm as soon as possible.

Question 14

Do you represent hernia mesh victims in my state?

Accepted Answer

We are reviewing potential hernia mesh lawsuits for victims for all 50 states. When victims search for a ‘hernia mesh lawyer near me' they are often on the wrong track. It is not necessary that you find a hernia mesh lawyer near you! A hernia mesh lawsuit will typically be transferred to a consolidated federal or state lawsuit in another state. You should hire the best hernia mesh lawyer in the country. Your decision as to which law firm you retain should not be based on whether the surgical mesh attorney is local.

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Hernia Mesh & Related FAQ's

What is a Hernia?

How long do hernia mesh cases take?

How long after a hernia mesh is implanted until complications occur?

Is there a deadline or statute of limitations to file a hernia mesh lawsuit?

How long after hernia surgery will the pain go away?

How do I know what hernia mesh I have?

Do you feel hernia mesh?

Will a Hernia Mesh implantation negatively affect Sexual relations?

What are common side effects and complications of a hernia mesh surgery?

Has my hernia mesh been recalled?

Do I qualify for hernia mesh lawsuit?

Do all hernia surgeries require mesh?

Surgical

There is also natural tissue hernia repair

How much compensation for hernia mesh?

Do you represent hernia mesh victims in my state?