Pryers Solicitors has recently been instructed by a number of women who have unexpectedly fallen pregnant despite being fitted with the Implanon contraceptive device by their healthcare provider.

It is believed that over 550 women in the UK have fallen pregnant whilst relying on the Implanon contraceptive implant since its introduction to the UK in 1999.

Implanon was the only single-rod subdermal contraceptive implant on the UK market for over 11 years and has been extremely popular; especially amongst young women.

The implant was withdrawn from the market in October 2010 and replaced by a newer version, known as “Nexplanon”.

The manufacturer of the device advises that the 4cm single-rod device, which is situated in the inside of the upper non-dominant arm, is approximately 99% effective in preventing pregnancy. However, it appears that the device is only 99% effective if it is inserted into the arm correctly.

Implanon was discontinued within the UK market because of reported cases of non-insertion and deep-insertion. The Medicine and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), the body who oversees the UK medical products market, received a number of reports, from healthcare professionals, complaining that the Implanon applicator made it difficult to know whether the semi-rigid rod had actually been inserted into the arm or not. It was also said to be difficult to locate the implant on radiology.

In a number of cases currently being investigated by Pryers, it has become apparent that the Implanon was never actually inserted into the womans arm.

Women who believed that they have been fitted with the Implanon device and later discovered that they had not may be entitled to seek compensation for unexpected pregnancy. In many cases, the women have had to take the difficult decision to terminate the pregnancy or have had other complications during pregnancy such as still-birth and the birth of a disabled child. All women suffered with an associated psychological impact due to the pregnancies.

In some cases the Implanon has been implanted so deeply into the patient’s arm that damage has been caused to the bicep muscles and nerves necessitating surgery to remove the implant. In other cases, where the implant was very deep in the arm some women required physiotherapy and other treatment to aid recovery.

If you have become unexpectedly pregnant whilst on the Implanon implant or have been injured by implant insertion and would like to discuss the circumstances of your case please contact either Suzanne Landels or Richard Greensit who are both specialist medical solicitors on 0800 316 0166 or at richard.greensit@pryers-solicitors.co.uk / suzanne.landels@pryers-solicitors.co.uk .