As a patient, you count on your doctors and trained medical professionals to keep you safe. You listen to their advice, and you use medical devices and products that they recommend. Sometimes, though, these medical devices can actually cause more damage than they prevent. Defective medical devices can injure or kill hundreds or thousands of people every year, and most people aren’t aware that they have any recourse. You do.
Call a board certified Dallas-Fort Worth personal injury lawyer today at 800-354-6275 for a free, no obligation consultation on your medical malpractice case.
Medical Device Defects and Recalls
Unfortunately, many defective medical devices are recalled every year. After use, these devices are typically found to either not function in the way they are designed to function, or actually cause negative and potentially serious side effects. Issues associated with defective medical devices can range from having to switch to a different medical device to serious, long-term consequences and side effects caused by using defective devices.
The Medical Device Approval Process
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) must approve medical devices before they can be marketed to the general public. The branch of the FDA that handles medical devices is the Center for Devices and Radiological Health, or CDRH. The CDRH must test and evaluate medical devices to ensure they’re safe before they can be released to the general public.
The FDA receives more than 3,000 medical device approval requests every single year, and sometimes defective medical devices sneak through the approval process. When the CDRH discovers potential medical device defects, the FDA may request that manufacturers make a voluntary recall, or may mandate a recall if the manufacturer is not receptive. Unfortunately, these recalls may come too late to prevent defective medical devices from causing serious, long-term side effects, or even fatalities in the event of serious malfunctions.
Don’t Let a Defective Medical Device Ruin Your Life
If you or a loved one has been injured by a defective medical device, don’t let the medical industry get away with it. Hire an attorney who will fight for your rights. Most defective medical devices are a result of poor testing and a rush to get a product to the market. By pursuing a defective medical device product liability case, you can help protect other people from suffering the same fate, and potentially recover some of your medical expenses.
