Del. woman wins $100 million in transvaginal mesh case

A Delaware jury has ordered a medical device manufacturer to pay $100 million to a Newark woman who, despite two surgeries, still has pieces of transvaginal mesh painfully embedded inside her.

Deborah Barba, 51, was awarded $25 million in compensatory and $75 million in punitive damages on Thursday following a two-week trial in Superior Court in Wilmington.

The verdict is the largest against Boston Scientific over the transvaginal mesh inserts. It surpasses a $73 million award in September for a Texas woman.

Barba had transvaginal mesh inserts, a net-like product used to treat incontinence and sagging pelvic organs in women, implanted in May 2009. Since then, she has had painful complications, including urinary tract infections and pain during sex, according to court documents.

“While difficult to share, I hope my case demonstrates to all mesh manufacturers the dangers of their products and the justice they owe victims,” Barba said in a statement through her attorneys.

The jury found that Boston Scientific failed to warn doctors and patients of the risk of the poorly designed inserts.

Kelly Leadem, a spokeswoman for the Massachusetts-based company, defended the company, saying it dedicates significant resources to ensuring products are safe.

“We strongly disagree with the jury’s finding and intend to appeal based on the strength of our evidence,” she said in an emailed statement to The News Journal.

Thursday’s verdict is the latest in ongoing litigation over the inserts.

Nearly 70,000 lawsuits were filed by women injured by the inserts in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia. Additional lawsuits are pending in other states.

Boston Scientific announced last month it would settle nearly 3,000 of those lawsuits by paying $119 million.

Fred Thompson, an attorney for Barba, said in a statement that Thursday’s verdict will send the message to Boston Scientific and other companies about the dangers of transvaginal mesh.

Barba’s other attorney, Fidelma Fitzpatrick, agreed, saying Boston Scientific and other mesh manufacturers should “take note of this verdict and resolve all pending cases swiftly.”

“Deborah’s case will hopefully bring more awareness of mesh issues, however, no woman and her loved ones should have to endure the stress of going to trial and baring their souls publicly to achieve justice,” Fitzpatrick said.

Contact Jessica Masulli Reyes at 302-324-2777, jmreyes@delawareonline.com or Twitter @JessicaMasulli.