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Read on its own, the FDA’s report on transvaginal mesh used in pelvic organ prolapse surgery makes a reader assume the product is soon to be recalled. From what I’ve heard, pelvic organ prolapse surgery’s failure or success relies far more on the skill of the urogynecologic surgeon than on the method employed or the medical device utilized. Overall, the serious health problems women have encountered after pelvic organ prolapse surgery may be more suggestive of a failure of surgeons and the medical field than of a specific product. Even if the FDA’s report may have pointed out the wrong culprit, it has serves the purpose of bringing attention to the overall high failure rates of pelvic organ prolapse surgery. In the past, patient reports related to pelvic organ prolapse repair surgery failure were less common – perhaps because of the very private nature of the problems that can result. Now, as women see how many others have suffered similar humiliation, pain and suffering, they’ll likely come forward to tell their own stories. What’s more, women have started to seek out surgical mesh lawyers in great numbers in order to pursue justice for these wrongs.
Pelvic organ prolapse is a circumstance that can happen to women after childbirth, after hysterectomy, or during menopause. In simple terms, the condition occurs when the pelvic muscles become damaged or stretched and can no longer support one or more pelvic organs. The organs then prolapse, or sag, into the vaginal cavity – and can even push out of the vagina Many women (up to 50%, some reports say) experience some degree of prolapse during their lives. Most women never experience any symptoms, but those who do may have difficulty with urination and sexual intercourse. Surgery is required to repair the condition in the most extreme cases. It is the use of a vaginal sling made of surgical mesh that has become the focus of transvaginal mesh lawyers and their clients. The 2010 FDA safety alert on this subject blames transvaginal mesh for a wide range of serious and potentially permanent health problems.
Experienced urogynecologic surgeons say that, in many cases, the skill and judgment of the surgeon is the deciding factor in whether a pelvic organ prolapse surgery will succeed or fail. Surgeons that rely on pre-packaged prolapse kits may be more apt to do a shoddy job. The FDA concluded that in many cases, regular stitches are safer than vaginal mesh; this may be because surgeons who are more competent and confident are more likely to trust their skills to make the repair as they see fit, rather than relying on a product developed by a medical device company. In any case, many medical professionals believe that transvaginal surgical mesh is only a part of the problem, and that a surgeon’s abilities will ultimately decide the outcome of a pelvic organ prolapse repair procedure. For now, vaginal mesh lawyers have turned their sights on companies such as Johnson & Johnson, who manufacture and market prolapse repair kits. Medical professionals and patients alike await more information from the FDA this fall after it receives recommendations from a committee on the topic.
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