Product Liability: Defective Medical Devices

Medical products and devices save lives every day in addition to helping prevent sickness and disease. However, they also pose serious risk to patients. Technological advances have made medical devices exceptionally sophisticated, but have placed patients at risk for new injuries. Many people have used a medical device in order to better their health, only to suffer injuries from that same device. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) defines a medical device as “an instrument, apparatus, implement, machine, contrivance, implant, in vitro reagent, or other similar or related article, including a component part, or accessory which is:

1. recognized in the official National Formulary, or the U.S Pharmacopoeia, or any supplement to them,
2. intended for use in the diagnosis of disease or other conditions, or in the cure, mitigation, treatment, or prevention of disease, in man or other animals, or
3. intended to affect the structure or any function of the body of man or other animals, and which does not achieve its primary intended purposed through chemical action within or on the body of man or other animals.

Dangerous or defective medical devices , such as faulty surgical instruments, implants, pacemakers, and prosthetics can give rise to a product liability claim if a person who undergoes surgery or uses a medical device is injured or dies as a result. Although closely monitored by the FDA, a product can be defective in its design, manufacturing process, or marketing strategy. Medical device manufacturers are expected to produce products that function both properly and effectively. When this expectation is breached, the patient has the right to recover for any injuries that resulted from use of the product.

If you or someone you know has been injured by a defective medical device, you may be entitled to recover for any medical expenses, lost and future wages, pain and suffering and scarring or disfigurement caused by the defective device, in addition to punitive damages. Call your Broward personal injury attorneys at Darfoor Law Firm at 1-833-DARFOOR to review your product liability claim and options.

If you have had an experience with defective medical devices and would like to share, please leave a comment on our Twitter page. We appreciate your feedback.