Lawsuits filed into a Mirena® IUD multidistrict litigation (MDL) that is being centralized to the Southern District of New York. Most of the plaintiffs in these cases allege similar injuries: That the Mirena® intrauterine (IUD) device migrated from its original position in the uterus, that the device perforated the uterus, and that the device being implanted in the uterus led to serious injuries.
Filed on April 8, 2013, the Transfer Order states that the MDL now is comprised of eight cases in eight districts; all but one of these cases alleges that the Mirena® IUD migrated from its intended position and perforated the uterus, causing related injuries. The Order also states that since the motion’s filing, the Panel has been made aware of an additional 40 related actions.
Released in 200, the small, t-shaped plastic Mirena® IUD is attached to two strings and works to prevent pregnancy by releasing the hormone levonorgestrel. Placed in the uterus by a health care professional, the Mirena® provides a long-term form of birth control that may be left in the uterus for up to five years.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) states that the most serious side effects associated with the Mirena® IUD include:
- Perforation of the uterine wall
- Embedment of the device in the uterine wall
- Intrauterine pregnancy
- Ectopic pregnancy
- Group A streptococcal sepsis
- Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID)
Surgical removal of the Mirena® is required when Mirena® IUD injuries occur, which may also lead to other serious injuries and infections. Some of these serious injuries are long-term and, sometimes, permanent.
In 2009, Bayer Healthcare Pharmaceuticals Inc. was reprimanded by the Department of Health and Human Services’ Division of Drug Marketing, Advertising, and Communications (DDMAC) for overstating the benefits—and neglecting to mention the risks—of Mirena® in the company’s “Simple Style” program. Bayer is the manufacturer of the Mirena® IUD.
“We are glad to see that the litigation is moving forward,” Matthew J. McCauley, Senior Litigation Counsel at Parker Waichman LLP, said. “By centralizing these cases to one court before one judge, cases can be processed more efficiently.” The centralized MDL is known as: In Re: Mirena IUD Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 2434.
Some 75 Mirena® cases have been filed in New Jersey state court; 50 other cases have been filed in federal courts nationwide. Plaintiffs’ attorneys believe this number will continue to rise since about 2 million women use the Mirena® world-wide. Parker Waichman has filed 50 of the 60 Mirena® IUD lawsuits pending in the Superior Courts of New Jersey. Lawsuits allege that the IUD is inherently defective, creates an unreasonable risk of injury to women, and that Bayer failed to warn consumers about the risks associated with the Mirena® IUD.
