Urologist and Hospital Land Defense win lawsuit over malpractice involving pelvic mesh

CVN screenshot of defense attorney Karen O'Kasey during her closing argument

Portland, Oregon – An Oregon state court jury on Wednesday acquitted a urologist and a hospital accused of implanting a woman with pelvic mesh that the FDA had previously warned against using. The entire trial was recorded from start to finish by Courtroom View Network.

A Multnomah County jury returned its verdict in a medical malpractice trial that began August 20. Plaintiff Tamarie Richards accused her urologist Dr. Michael Lemmers and the Legacy Health hospital network of failing to obtain her informed consent before implanting Boston Scientific's Uphold Lite mesh implant in 2019 to treat her pelvic organ prolapse.

Richards claimed that the device, which the FDA had advised against using before her surgery, caused her severe chronic pain and required another unsuccessful surgery to remove it. However, attorneys for both defendants argued that Richards was fully informed of the risks associated with the procedure and that the FDA's warnings to mesh manufacturers did not amount to a formal recall.

The entire trial, including all testimony, was recorded from start to finish by CVN and is available for unlimited on-demand viewing, in addition to numerous other pelvic mesh malpractice and product liability trials. with a subscription to CVN's online video library for trial dates.

Richards' attorneys sought more than $9 million in damages, claiming that FDA warnings issued 11 days before Richards' surgery and another just hours earlier should have prompted Dr. Lemmers to cancel the non-urgent surgery and that the Uphold Lite should have been removed from the hospital's inventory. The device's manufacturer, Boston Scientific, was originally named in the lawsuit but was no longer an active defendant when the case went to trial.

Richards claimed that Dr. Lemmers did not fully explain the risks of polypropylene mesh implants. Polypropylene is a compound that can contract when it comes into contact with human tissue, causing debilitating pain and other side effects in patients. Her lawyers said there are safer alternatives to treat her condition and her surgery should not have been performed after Dr. Lemmers learned of the FDA safety warning.

Lawyers for Legacy Health and Dr. Lemmers successfully argued that the hospital followed standard practice after learning of the FDA warnings – which they said were directed at mesh manufacturers – and that Uphold Lite had full FDA approval at the time Richards' surgery was originally scheduled.

They relied heavily on Richard's own pre-trial testimony, which they told the jury showed that she was fully aware of the condition of the implant and the risks involved, and that after discussions with Dr. Lemmers at an outpatient appointment before the operation and at the hospital on the morning of the procedure, she nevertheless gave her full consent to proceed with the operation.

Dr. Lemmers' attorney also argued that Richards' post-operative problems were actually due to pre-existing medical conditions, including prior implantation of another mesh implant from a different manufacturer. Jurors heard the argument that Dr. Lemmers had specifically used the Uphold Lite device nearly two decades before Richards' surgery without patients suffering any adverse consequences.

Attorney Greg Vigna of Vigna Law Group, part of Richards' legal team, told CVN after the trial that they were disappointed with the verdict. He expressed regret that no further evidence about Boston Scientific's alleged direct communications with Dr. Lemmers and Legacy employees was introduced into evidence after the net maker successfully defeated a subpoena.

Vigna's co-counsel Ben Martin of the Ben Martin Law Group expressed a similar sentiment.

“Although we are disappointed for our client, who means a lot to us, we respect the jury's verdict,” he said.

Attorneys for the defendants did not respond to a request for comment from CVN.

Dr. Lemmers was represented by Karen O'Kasey of Hart Wagner LLP.

Legacy Health was represented by Peter Eidenberg of Keating Jones Hughes PC.

The case is titled Tamarie Richards v. Legacy Health et al. Case number 21CV15859 in Multnomah County District Court.

Email David Siegel at [email protected]