Essure: The Women’s Stories

Several women who tried Essure told their stories about how they had to fight for several years against the terrible adverse reactions of this dangerous contraceptive device. The most unlucky ones suffered horrifying complications whose consequences permanently injured them.

Essure is a permanent birth control method approved in 2002, as a non-surgical alternative to more invasive methods of contraception such as tubal ligation. According to the manufacturer, nearly 750,000 devices have been implanted in the last 15 years. Still, a recent wave of complaints raised the public awareness about this device’s purported safety. Thousands of women filed their adverse reaction reports or even brought their lawsuits to court, claiming that they had to suffer all kind of side effects, ranging from excruciating pelvic pain to constant fatigue, heavy bleeding and even life-threatening complications such as device breakage and organ perforation.

Essure consists of two small metal coils that are implanted inside the fallopian tubes. As soon as the inflammation process starts, the body produces scar tissue around the coil itself, effectively blocking the tube and preventing sperm cells from fecundating the eggs. However, the long-term safety of this product has never been adequately evaluated, because the device was released to the market through the fast-track approval process. Some 17,000 women shared their common stories and complaints on Facebook, and many of them resorted to asking the help of an Essure attorney to seek compensation for the injuries they sustained.

Because of the growing number of complaints, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) gave to a panel of experts the task of revisiting the safety of Essure contraceptive device manufactured by Conceptus, a subsidiary of Bayer. Until then, no Essure lawsuit can be brought to court as Bayer is protected from all injury claims due to the FDA’s license received through the premarket approval process. However, some lawyers are trying to remove this legal shielding by asking the U.S. District Court of Pennsylvania to invalidate the rules that ensured device’s approval.

In the meanwhile, we wished to share some of the most significant stories of women who took the heavy burden of Essure side effects on themselves.

Becky Beesley

Becky Beesley of Gilbert has been implanted with Essure in 2012, but as soon as the coils were placed into position her body immediately rejected them. “My leg started to tremor and I threw up a couple of times.” The most serious health issues, however, began manifesting after a couple of months. Like many other women, she had to endure a constant pain sensation that was so burdensome, she was forced to quit her job as a teacher. Not even removing the coil was sufficient, however. After an X-ray examination, doctors found that the device was broken, and several pieces of the coil still sat inside her uterus. Sadly, for Becky Beesley, the only viable solution to her problems was hysterectomy to remove her genital apparatus.

The Women from Phoenix

Being hysterectomized is a terrible event in any woman’s life, but it is even more so when the woman is still young. Tara Ament and Crystal Arias from Phoenix had to undergo a hysterectomy operation at 30 and 26 years, respectively. They reported a “horrible pain” that poked in their stomach every time they would sit down. Another woman from the Valley, Amanda Holt, also reported similar symptoms and found that a fragment of the coil had migrated and embedded itself in her abdominal lining. She chose hysterectomy to put a stop to her excruciating pain. “I’ve been sick for so long, that if what I had to sacrifice was my uterus and my female organs to feel better, I didn’t care. I just wanted to feel good,” she explained.

Amanda Dykeman

Amanda Dykeman of Coal Valley, Illinois, was just 28 years old in September 2010 when she chose what it seemed a much more convenient method of permanent contraception than surgical sterilization. Essure only required a couple of minutes to be implanted in a day hospital setting, and within the same morning, she was safely back at home without all the complications of general anesthesia. Amanda’s symptoms caused by this device’s side effects severely affected her daily life. She was so bloated that people asked her if she was pregnant, and she suffered from chronic migraines, abdominal, joint and back pain, difficulties in concentration, gastrointestinal bleeding, tooth deterioration and menstrual irregularity that eventually led her to a sad state of constant depression. In May 2013, she was diagnosed with a chronic inflammation of the cervix, but the alarming number of blood clots and the fallopian tube perforation caused by the coil led her into requesting a hysterectomy. Her symptoms did not entirely disappear after the intervention, however. Her belly is so full of scar tissue, that several abdominal organs formed adhesions between them, causing her significant digestive issues. Dykeman filed a claim against Bayer to receive proper compensation for all the complications she is going to endure for the rest of her life.

Kim Meyers

Kim Myers was implanted with the birth control device back in 2008, and she immediately started suffering the infamous Essure side effects. She was a competent horse rider, but the pelvic pain was so unbearable, she had to quit all the competitions. Her life was destroyed, her marriage wrecked up, but what’s even worse Kim had to face discrimination from both doctors and Bayer itself. Physicians considered her pain reports as just “silly complaints” of a “hormonal little woman.” Even the pharmaceutical giant hides behind the US federal pre-emptive laws in order to avoid “frivolous” Essure lawsuits.

Tisha Scott

After the 34 years old Tisha Scott of Drakesville, Iowa, and her husband had their third son, they decided it was the right time for Tisha to find a permanent form contraception. Scott’s doctor told her that Essure was a much safer alternative to laparoscopic sterilization, so the woman opted for this alternative form of birth control. Searing, burning pain wrecked Tisha’s life as soon as she got the device implanted, though. It was so severe that it prevented her from even just leaving her bed: “It feels like you’ve been hit by a truck every day of your life,” she explained. Not even the two surgical operations she endured provided her relief from this nightmarish pain, that soon spread all over her body. Scott claims that after the implant her life was literally ruined her, and asked the help of an injury lawyer to evaluate her legal options.

The list of total patients is too long for anyone to write every single story. Hundreds, if not thousands, kept their sufferings to themselves, choosing not to tell the rest of the world about it. Although the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as well as the manufacturer, Bayer AG, keep claiming the device is safe and effective, the agony of these victims still needs to be properly addressed. Something went wrong; something with the device or the way it was implanted, didn’t work as it was supposed to be. Whoever is the one to be held responsible, only one thing is sure: that these women’s pain is real.

Article written by: Dr. Claudio Butticè, Pharm.D.

Published: 2016/03/30
Last Updated: 2016/09/19

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