Study Reveals Bard IVC Filters Often Fail or Fall Apart
If a doctor has implanted a dangerous IVC filter in your body, please contact our law firm to learn about your eligibility to get a Bard IVC filter settlement for compensation.
Doctors use inferior vena cava filters to stop blood clots from entering patients’ lungs. This reduces the risk of a pulmonary embolism. Physicians often implant IVC devices when anticoagulant medications fail to deliver the desired results or prove unsuitable for people with multiple health conditions. Sadly, these units have the ability to inflict serious medical harm. A recent study revealed that Bard’s filters fail on a regular basis.
When they conducted research for the American Medical Association’s journal, health experts compiled failure and fracture data on two of this manufacturer’s products. They discovered that both the G2 and Recovery models have high fracture rates. Furthermore, these devices frequently fail and allow pulmonary embolisms to occur. The researchers reacted by suspending the use of Bard IVC products in their employers’ medical facilities.
These minuscule filters have a cone-like appearance. Each unit features multiple arms that intercept clots before they can reach the lungs. Unfortunately, these appendages have the potential to fall off and travel to different parts of a person’s body. The whole device may break loose as well. If this happens, the fragments can trigger internal bleeding by severing veins. A patient could also suffer organ damage or die with little warning.
The researchers determined that failures and fractures generally increase as this IVC device remains in a person’s body for longer periods of time. Filter fragments can reach the heart, lungs or liver after they enter the body’s circulatory system. About 16 percent of patients possess filters with one or more fractures, according to the study results.
Researchers have linked the device’s weakness to a specific material used by the manufacturer. Bard’s G2 and Recovery products feature a metal alloy called nitinol. It contains a mixture of titanium and nickel that helps the filters return to their original shape when necessary. This substance also compromises durability to a considerable degree.
The study’s results won’t appear in a printed medical journal until November. Nevertheless, serious safety concerns have prompted researchers to make this information available to the public as quickly as possible. It has already been published on the Internet.
Although Bard created its IVC products for long-term implantation, they do not reliably stay intact. The Food and Drug Administration has reacted by issuing an advisory for patients and medical professionals. It urged them to carefully examine the risks associated with these devices. The agency also called for doctors to remove the implants immediately after the risk of blood clots decreases.
Federal regulators have yet to prohibit the sale of these filters or penalize the manufacturer in any way. However, affected patients needn’t wait for the FDA to issue a ruling. They have the option to initiate lawsuits at any time. Lawyers believe that numerous citizens will take legal action in response to the study results. This may force Bard to stop selling these harmful devices until it can develop a safer design.
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