Thompsons NI representing more than 70 women affected by mesh

Thompsons NI Solicitors is acting for over 70 women affected by the use of mesh to deal with incontinence, often following childbirth.

Previously gynaecologists used the “Burch method” to repair damage caused to a woman’s pelvic floor however from around the 1990s it seems that treating doctors increasingly used mesh to deal with incontinence problems and prolapses.

Unfortunately a large number of women were not informed that the mesh was a form of synthetic material and that it would be difficult, if not impossible, to remove. The mesh implants work by supporting the tissue around the urethra and over time the implant becomes embedded in the tissue.

A number of the women who have spoken to medical negligence solicitors at Thompsons NI have confirmed they were not sufficiently informed about the procedure or offered an alternative.

Many of the women complain of excruciating abdominal pain often radiating into their legs as well as internal pain, some women have also reported faecal incontinence and a reoccurrence of urinary incontinence. In a number of cases the mesh has eroded through the vaginal wall or perforated organs.

At present, women in Northern Ireland have been told that there is no one in NI sufficiently experienced to be able to remove the entirety of the mesh, and women are being forced to seek ECRs to be seen by specialists in England.