Winnipeg woman 'traumatized' by decade of pain after surgical mesh splits apart, lawsuit alleges

A Winnipeg woman is suing  Johnson & Johnson after more than a decade of pain she alleges was caused by one of the medical giant's surgical mesh products splitting apart and becoming embedded in her organs and tissues.

The woman, 57, got the mesh — made by Ethicon, a Johnson & Johnson trademark — after a partial hysterectomy in 2008, according to a statement of claim filed in Manitoba's Court of King's Bench on March 15.

At that time, she was suffering from general pain and diagnosed with fibromyalgia and depression, but still worked full-time and had an active life, the lawsuit says.

However, after the hysterectomy, her pain got worse.

For more than a decade, she saw her family doctor and a variety of specialists, spent time in the emergency room and had numerous scans and tests done, but no one could figure out the cause, the filing alleges.

Meanwhile, she developed stomach issues and had trouble sleeping, and her mental health deteriorated.

By 2020, the pain was affecting every part of the woman's life, including causing her to miss work and preventing her from being physically or socially active, the lawsuit says.

"At times, the pain was so significant that she could not sleep, laugh, cough or sit upright in a chair for longer than five minutes without significant discomfort," the court filing says.

In 2021, the woman had her gallbladder removed in the hopes of relieving some pain —  but it continued getting worse.

Later that year, an exploratory surgery revealed the Ethicon mesh put inside her over a decade earlier "had eroded, split apart and/or disintegrated," becoming affixed to her bowels and resulting in serious infection throughout her body, the filing alleges.

"Her experience has left her traumatized," the lawsuit says.

No statement of defence has been filed. None of the allegations in the lawsuit have been proven in court. 

Ryan Carbain, a spokesperson for Johnson & Johnson, said the company's pelvic mesh products are safe.

"We will always empathize with any patient who has had complications as the result of a medical procedure, but our pelvic mesh products are recognized as safe and effective treatments for patients suffering from severe prolapse and stress urinary incontinence," Carbain said in an email.