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Panacryl Endosurgical Sutures Defective, But Clock Ran Out for Plaintiff

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Trenton, NJIn spite of the fact that a woman's infection following a cesarean section was believed to have been caused by Panacryl endosurgical sutures, two courts ruled for summary judgment in favor of defendant Johnson & Johnson Health Care Systems Inc. (J&J) and Ethicon Inc. because the plaintiff waited too long to launch her legal challenge against the allegedly faulty product.

The New Jersey Superior Court, Appellate Division, this past spring upheld an earlier court ruling that applicable statute of limitations barred the products liability action by plaintiff Misti Blessing.

Health Law Week of April 2, 2010 refers to the Blessing case. It was reported that on August 10, 2001 the plaintiff underwent a cesarean section for which Panacryl sutures were used to close the wound. All appeared well for six months. Then, on February 10th of the following year, the plaintiff noted blood oozing from the incision, which had since opened.

Consulting her doctor the same day that she noted the bleeding, Blessing was told, "the sutures caused an infection, and that the infection worked from the inside out and it bubbled out and it opened up my incision," she said.

Four weeks later, on March 15, 2002, Blessing underwent scar revision surgery, which included the removal of the allegedly problematic sutures.

Blessing subsequently brought a products liability action against J&J and Ethicon, alleging the sutures that caused her abdominal infection were defective. However, the plaintiff didn't launch her action until May 31, 2007—long after the normal two-year statute of limitations had run its course. Noting the delay in bringing the action, the trial court granted the defendant's motion for summary judgment.

The plaintiff appealed the ruling, arguing that that the trial court failed to apply the discovery rule which holds that a cause of action does not accrue until the injured party discovers, or by an exercise of reasonable diligence and intelligence should have discovered a basis for an actionable claim.

The appellate court affirmed the trial court's original ruling given evidence that the plaintiff was aware that her injury was caused by Panacryl sutures, which failed to perform as expected. "A reasonable person of ordinary diligence would be in possession of enough information to realize that the injuries may have been due to the fault of another," said the court. The fact that Blessing, with this knowledge in hand, failed to launch her claim within two years, was her own responsibility.

Be that as it may, the fact remains that Panacryl sutures were described as having caused a potentially serious infection that resulted in a second surgery.

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READER COMMENTS

Posted by

on
I think this is so unfair that you only have so long to file!! I had a lap. gallbladder surgery in 1993 due to a dysfunctional gallbladder (no stones),I had a rash,diahrea,and infections.It was not real bad so I could push myself to keep going to raise my five children,I always felt like I was in a fog,and tired.I kept going back and of course the M.D.'s always told me nothing is wrong.Go home and take these samples of Paxil,and anti-biodics, it will make you feel better.I went back alot and finally figured they would not help anyway or even listen and did not care at all!!! It was not like I had all the time in the world anyway to be sitting in the Clinic every week or month with raising five children,and not alot of extra money either to just to hand out to them for doing absolutly nothing to help me.If they were doing something to help Iwould not mind paying them for there sevices.It was always the same old story and the fevers would come back in no time after the anti-biodics were finished!!! I do remember my incision was oozing puss a few times also,they did something with it and put a few new stitches in it.I have lived on anti-biodics off and on since then.I have had to have 6or7 ERCP.'s to clean out scar tissue out of my bile ducts.I was just in the hospital last week again and admitted for a enlarged bile duct.The doctor that stays and just works in the hospital(hospitalist), said no gastro doc here will help you,or can't do anything for you.I need to go to where the gurue's are to look for zebra's,and they (Doctor's here) only can do something when they can see a problem,then they go after it and fix it!!!! Now I am so afraid!!!!! What happens when my ALT,AST,and Sed Rate go terribly high again, and I am in so much pain and covered in sweat!!!! Are they just going to let me die,and do nothing for me?My first ERCP done was here and it was blocked completly off,he had to knife it and it was very difficult is what the nurse told us after.We never did get to talk to the surgeon after the ERCP,we even called his office and the receptionist said he does not see patients in his office.I have had elevated ALT & AST since then the ER has set up two or three more ERCP.'s with him and he has his receptionist call back and say there is nothing he can do for me,so we have had to drive clear across the state to get them done since,and now that specialist has moved to the other side of the US,and the liver doctor that I seen that worked with him has retired.I am in a bad situation and I don't know where to turn or go!!!!!!!!!!!!! They are blocked now I can feel it,and I am swelling like the very first time and in terrible pain!!! If my ALT & ASTget back to 1800&1500,Sed Rate around 550 again(the liver specialist told us he had never seen anybody live through that before).I had a liver sp. e-mail from New York(cedar sianai),and one from California(Mt.Sanai),and one from Mexico,they all said they believe it is some form of cholangietis due to a surgical error.Tjhey all three said to get a biopsy on my liver and a few other tests,we have tried and no one will do one.I am scared and do not know what to do!!! This has left us financially devistated,so we can not afford to just take off across the US.I wonder if that is why no one around this area will even help with this.We have never said a word about the other Doctor's e-mailing us either.If not one Doctor will tell a person something is wrong,you cannot go to an attorney.Also does anyone out there know if I should have 13-24 surgical clips from that gallbladder surgery?
Please Help Me!!!!!!!!!!!!
Diane

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