Avaira Torn Cornea
Unwitting wearers of Avaira Toric contact lenses injured after maker quietly yanks product – MSNBC
Weitz & Luxenberg announces readiness to accept cases from injured users
NEW YORK CITY (Oct. 11, 2011) – Cable-news network MSNBC reported today that at least a dozen consumers suffered excruciating pain or landed in emergency rooms after unwittingly wearing recalled contact lenses made by Fairport, N.Y.,-based CooperVision Inc.
MSNBC offered as examples an Atlanta mother of two who suffered abrasions to each of her corneas, and a Hampton, Va., 15-year-old whose cornea was torn.
The victims were injured by Avaira Toric lenses after CooperVision voluntarily recalled them on Aug. 19.
MSNBC cited critics who contend the recall was handled in a way to ensure it received scant publicity, effectively denying potential injury victims warning of the hazard. And, by keeping the recall as quiet as possible, vulnerable consumers continue to face exposure to injury, the cited critics said.
Now, according to MSNBC, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is threatening to issue a public warning of its own about the recalled contact lenses if CooperVision doesn’t do so first. And soon.
“Absent prompt and adequate communication by CooperVision, the FDA may independently share its concerns about Avaira Toric contact lenses,” wrote FDA spokeswoman Morgan Liscinsky in an e-mail obtained by MSNBC.
MSNBC explained that the FDA might take that step because it lacks authority to compel CooperVision to do much more beyond that which the manufacturer already has done.
Makes statements about quality
CooperVision officials said they initiated the recall after investigating a “small number of unexpected wearer reports of hazy vision and discomfort” and that it has fully cooperated with the FDA – beginning with an Aug. 25 notification of the recall.
MSNBC divulged that the recall came after the company also yanked its Avaira Toric lenses in Canada, Germany, Italy, Australia, and Hong Kong.
In the U.S., the recalled Avaira Toric lenses were distributed by Costco, Walmart, LensCrafters and other major suppliers.
CooperVision characterizes itself as one of the world's largest manufacturers of contact lenses, its products sent to market through a network of facilities in 12 countries spanning five continents. The company asserts that it offers vision practitioners and their patients “the most advanced contact lenses possible...utilizing the best manufacturing technology and expertise the world has to offer.”
The company’s promotional materials further propose that “CooperVision's advanced manufacturing and distribution systems deliver both a consistently high level of performance to lens wearers, and the capacity and flexibility necessary to meet virtually any production volume the market demands.”
It also states that “[o]ur wide range of manufacturing resources allows us to offer some of the industry's most advanced contact lens materials and optics.”
Injured persons should act now
Damaged corneas are expensive to mend. In some cases, the only remedy is a costly transplant. As a result, injured wearers of CooperVision’s Avaira Toric contact lenses can expect huge medical bills. As well, it’s possible they will suffer lost wages, not to mention varying degrees of pain and suffering.
The personal injury lawyers of New York law firm Weitz & Luxenberg believe that injured Avaira Toric wearers may have a case against CooperVision and be entitled to compensation for the harm done.
If you are among those injured by CooperVision’s Avaira Toric recalled contact lenses, please call Weitz & Luxenberg at 1-800-476-6070 or use the convenient online form on this web page to tell what happened to you and arrange for a free legal consultation.
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