The Paragard Lawsuit: What You Need to Know about the Injuries caused by the Paragard Copper T

Although the Paragard Copper T IUD or Intrauterine Device has been around since the 1980s and is considered 100% safe, there have been recent incidents of the device breaking inside the uterus, or during its insertion into the uterus and extraction from the womb. In summary, the copper device has been in the news again during 2020 because of filed lawsuits that claim the device can break, penetrate the uterine wall, and imbed itself in other organs close to the uterus.

A cited example is that of a woman in Nebraska, USA, who filed a lawsuit against the Paragard IUD manufacturers in 2016, stating that during the Copper T’s removal, the device broke and embedded itself in her uterus, requiring surgery to have it removed.

As an aside, even though this scenario occurred in 2016, there have been additional cases in 2020, hence the Paragard lawsuit.

What is the Paragard lawsuit?

Before considering the types of injuries caused by the Copper T IUD and their severity, let’s take a brief look at the ins and outs of the Paragard lawsuit.

Succinctly stated, this lawsuit is a compensation claim for women who have been injured by Paragard T 380A IUD breaking or fracturing in their uterus. The plaintiff’s raison d’etre for this suit is that they claim that the manufacturers, Teva Pharmaceuticals, developed a defective IUD, and they were negligent in their failure to instruct medical professionals on how to extract the device without it breaking.

The attorneys, who are representing women who are victims from across the USA, are filing for financial compensation for medical bills, pain and suffering, and loss of income.

It is also essential to note that this lawsuit is not a class action suit. Rather, it is a multidistrict litigation.

What is a multidistrict litigation?

In summary, a multidistrict litigation is a special federal legal process that is designed to speed up the processing of complex product liability lawsuits.

The injuries caused by the Paragard T 380A IUD

As you can imagine, the injuries caused by a copper (metal) device fracturing or breaking up inside your uterus are likely to be rather severe.

The best-case scenario would be if the device breaks inside the uterine cavity and falls onto the lining or wall of the uterus. Surgery is still required to remove the copper piece. But there is no damage to any other internal organs.

Juxtapositionally, the fractured pieces of copper can penetrate the uterus wall and lodge themselves in the organs like the kidneys, liver, and intestines that are situated close to the uterus.

Major surgery is required to both remove the copper pieces of the IUD and to repair the perforated organs. If the uterus is badly perforated, the surgeon will have to perform a hysterectomy. On the other hand, if the intestines are perforated, the digestive enzymes will leak into the abdominal cavity causing severe peritonitis. If left untreated, peritonitis can turn into sepsis which is the body’s deadly response to severe infection. Sepsis disables and kills millions of people.

Final thoughts

It is clear from this discussion that leaving a fractured UID is not a wise idea. Therefore, if you think that your UID has broken or is not situated correctly, it’s essential to call your doctor to discuss your concerns. If you are a victim of a fractured UID, consult your attorney to discuss your options as soon as possible.