Living with Hernia versus Kugel Mesh

Los Angeles, CAHarry wishes he had spent more time researching Kugel Mesh before having surgery to treat a hernia. After two more unsuccessful surgeries to remove the Composix Kugel Mesh patch, Harry is filing a Kugel Mesh lawsuit.

Harry (not his real name) developed a ventral hernia after he had open abdominal surgery, which is not uncommon. Two years later in 2006, the memory coil, which is part of the hernia mesh repair patch, broke. Harry was unaware of the Kugel Mesh recall in December of 2005 due to the memory coil ring breaking, which could lead to serious and permanent injury if the Kugel mesh is placed near an internal organ.

“I was in terrible pain and thought the hernia had come back,” says Harry. “After some tests at the hospital, I found out that this memory coil broke and caused a fistula. I spent a few days in the hospital and had to undergo another hernia repair. And this year has been the worse: I have been in the hospital three times because of small bowel obstruction the doctors say was caused by repeated abdominal surgeries - because of this defective Kugel patch.”

Even though Harry has medical insurance, he can barely afford the co-pays. Add that to weeks of time off work without pay, and continual medical bills: He is hopeful that Davol, the manufacturer of Dr. Robert Kugel’s patch, will at least cover his medical costs and loss of wages.

Surgeons against Kugel Mesh

Back in 2006, Dr. Olga Jonasson, a professor of surgery at the University of Illinois, told HealthDay News that a hernia operated on can cause complications from the surgery itself. She has seen men who have lived with hernias for 40 years and believes that “If it is not broken, don't fix it.”

So what if the hernia is broken? Dr. David R. Flum, an associate professor of surgery at the University of Washington, agrees that, if it's not broken, there is really no reason to fix it. And the chances of a hernia needing to be fixed, i.e., a strangulating hernia, is minimal. Flum said that, “If you operate on people preventively, before they have symptoms, they don't do any better or any worse than the group of people who decide they are going to watch and wait, and if it becomes symptomatic fix it.”

“I continue to suffer physically from this mesh,” Harry adds. “My diet and lifestyle have been completely changed and my food changes alone have made my life miserable. If I had a choice, I would rather live with the hernia than with this mesh. I had discomfort with the hernia; I have pain with this mesh.”