Shoulder Pain Pump Trials Set for 2010

By Michele Wallace

Published on October 13, 2009

Beginning in 2010, state and federal courtrooms across the country will be host to lawsuits against pain pump and anesthetic drug manufacturers; consumers claim they have suffered catastrophic cartilage damage after having pain pumps placed in their shoulders.

The post-operative pain pumps were used to manage pain after shoulder surgeries from 1999 through 2007. Beginning in 2006, a number of physicians began raising concerns regarding patients developing post-Arthroscopic Glenohumeral Chondrolysis, or PAGCL. PAGCL involves the deterioration of cartilage in the shoulder joint. It causes extreme pain and often leads to complete joint replacement surgery.

Evidence shows that pain pump manufacturers aggressively promoted use of the post-operative pain pumps as an alternative to taking narcotic pain medications. Further evidence shows that manufacturers failed to conduct a comprehensive investigation to evaluate long-term safety risks to patients.

Manufacturers are arguing that there was no way to have been able to foresee the injuries inflicted on patients, while also arguing that the current state of scientific evidence is insufficient.

Additional shoulder pain pump lawsuits filed in state and federal courts across the nation continue to be scheduled for trial. The defendants rejected litigation at the national level, resulting in trials in numerous jurisdictions. Confidential settlements are occurring for the initial cases, so no pain pump case has gone to verdict.

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