Devices and Medications May Present Dangers
We are all supposed to benefit from America’s medical system and medical research. However, in the drive to make maximum profits, the manufacturers of medical devices and pharmaceutical companies often put Americans in unnecessary danger. The background reason this happens is perfectly clear. Health care adds up to one-sixth of the U.S. economy. Blockbuster drugs and new medical devices can bring these companies hundreds of millions, if not billions, in profit. But when good judgment is not used in the pursuit of these profits, the result can be death and disfigurement for innocent Americans.
There are many historical examples. The painkiller Vioxx stormed the market to great acclaim, but it ultimately turned out that the company had concealed the increased risk of heart attack, and other major complications, in an effort to collect those massive profits. Once popular types of silicone breast implants leaked, causing dire complications for tens of thousands of women. The lethal danger of thalidomide was concealed, causing terrible birth defects.
Patients, and the legal system, serve as an important check on the pharmaceutical companies and medical device companies. By promptly raising the issue of complications, harmful side effects, and even wrongful deaths with an attorney and in our courts, companies that might otherwise reach too greedily for quick profits are reigned in and given a reason to think twice. But most importantly, quick action on the part of patients and raising problems with drugs and medical devices saves lives by triggering recalls or the removal of dangerous drugs from the market.
At any given time, certain dangerous drugs and devices are being recalled, and it is imperative for people affected by those situations to contact an attorney. For example, the Bard Compost type of hernia mesh has been recalled as it has caused serious infections, failure of surgical repairs and even unnecessary deaths. This comes not long after a variety of what are called “transvaginal meshes” caused debilitating injuries to women who had them used on them in a variety of surgeries. A chemotherapy drug called “Taxotere” that was rushed to the market to expand profits, caused permanent hair loss for those who took it, and it was used despite the availability of a substitute drug that did not have that side effect.
Additionally, it has been learned in recent months that Johnson & Johnson marketed talcum powder to women for feminine hygiene purposes for decades and had long been aware that there was a tendency of talcum powder to cause ovarian cancer and other diseases. These circumstances where companies market something as perfectly safe that they know to be dangerous are more common than people think, and, of course, much more common than they should be. When a company, even a famous one like Johnson & Johnson, conceals the truth to its customers this way, it is imperative that the courts bring those companies to justice and fairly compensate the victims.
