C.R. Bard Wins Second IVC Filter Lawsuit

C.R. Bard has won their second IVC filter lawsuit. The Arizona jury ruled that the company properly warned doctors of the potential complications and risks associated with their IVC filter products. The company lost its first trial earlier in the year and was ordered to pay $3.6 million.

Bard is facing 3,800 lawsuits in Arizona.

The company’s most recent trial centered on the case of Doris Jones of Georgia. Jones had Bard’s Eclipse IVC filter implanted in 2010, and five years later, she started to experience headaches and arm pain. Scans found that the filter fractured, causing a piece of the filter to block the right pulmonary artery in the process.

The artery is responsible for carrying blood between the heart and lungs.

Doctors were able to remove the majority of the filter following Jones’ complications, but the part of the fractured filter blocking the pulmonary artery was unable to be removed. Jones’ lawyers contend that the fractured piece still poses a fatal risk to their client.

Investigations in 2015 found that Bard’s IVC filters were connected to at least 39 deaths.

Bard and Cook Medical face thousands of lawsuits relating to their IVC filter products. Cook had 4,189 pending lawsuits against the company at the beginning of May; Bard had over 3,834 lawsuits at the same time period.

Cook lost a lawsuit in Texas at the end of last week when the jury found in favor of the plaintiff. The plaintiff was awarded $1.2 million after evidence showed that the Cook Celect IVC filter was the cause of Jeffrey Pavlock’s injuries. Pavlock suffered from organ and blood vessel perforations.

The jury claims that Cook Medical didn’t warn doctors or patients of the risks associated with their IVC filters. Pavlock’s filter was meant to be temporary, but when doctors tried to remove the filter seven weeks later, they found that the filter moved and was embedded in his blood vessel. Parts of the filter also perforated the small intestine and aorta.