The lawsuit was filed by Patricia K., a woman from Florida who was injured by the Option™ Inferior Vena Cava Filter (“IVC Filter”) manufactured by Argon Medical Devices Inc. and Rex Medical, L.P.
The IVC Filter was placed in her inferior vena cava, the largest vein in the human body, to catch blood clots and prevent a pulmonary embolism.
It was implanted on November 8, 2012 at Mease Countryside Hospital in Safety Harbor, Florida by Dr. Andrew George Davis.
The plaintiff underwent multiple medical procedures in an attempt to retrieve the IVC Filter. The first attempt was on February 13, 2014 at Mease Countryside Hospital. It was unsuccessful.
The plaintiff required a second retrieval attempt on June 18, 2014 at Stanford University Hospital & Clinics in Stanford, California by Dr. William Kuo. He was successful and the IVC Filter was removed.
The IVC Filter was challenging to remove because it was embedded in her vein and tilted. The plaintiff is seeking compensation for health problems related to these injuries and multiple retrieval surgeries.
Argon Medical Devices and Rex Medical are accused of negligence, failure to warn about side effects, design defect, manufacturing defect, breach of implied and express warranty, and misrepresentation.
The lawsuit was filed on January 25, 2018 in the First Judicial District of Pennsylvania — Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas (Trial Division / Civil Section) — Case ID: 180104254.
There are now over 7,000 additional IVC filter lawsuits pending in state and federal courts nationwide against Rex Medical, Argon Medical, Cook Medical, B. Braun, C.R. Bard and other manufacturers.
The plaintiff is represented by attorney Ben C. Martin of The Law Offices of Ben C. Martin in Dallas, Texas; and attorney Stephen A. Sheller of Sheller, P.C., in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.