ParfumGigi@aol.com
21 novembre, 2006 13:49
THE HIDDEN DANGERS OF IMPLANTS
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Breast Implants — Timeline
1930s and '40s
Prostitutes in Japan start to have substances such as paraffin, sponges and non-medical grade silicone injected into their breasts to enlarge them. They do this because they believe American servicemen like larger breasts.
1960
The first silicone breast implants are developed in the United States by two plastic surgeons in Texas: Frank Gerow and Thomas Cronin.
1962
Timmie Jean Lindsey becomes the first woman to receive silicone breast implants in the United States. Breast implant surgeries start to take place in Canada around this time.
1970s
Scientists within Dow Corning Corp. voice concerns over safety. The memos are kept quiet.
1976
The Federal Drug Administration starts regulating medical devices, including implants.
1977
An attorney in Houston wins the first lawsuit for a Cleveland woman involving breast implants. The woman claims that her implants ruptured and operations to fix the problem caused pain and suffering. She is awarded a $170,000 (US) settlement from Dow Corning.
January 1982
The FDA proposes to classify silicone breast implants into a Class III category. This would mean manufacturers would have to provide safety data in order to keep their products on the market.
1984
Stern vs. Dow Corning legal battle takes place in San Francisco. Stern's attorney produces a number of internal Dow Corning documents that had been discovered in a Dow. The jury finds that Maria Stern's systemic auto-immune disease is caused by her silicone breast implants. She's awarded $211,000 (US) in compensatory damages and $1.5 million in punitive damages. The evidence is sealed by a court order.
June 1988
The FDA categorizes breast implants into a Class III meaning it's a high risk product. They give manufacturers until 1991 to prove the safety and effectiveness of their product. At this time a progressive shift from silicone implants to saline implants starts to take place in both the U.S. and Canada.
May 1990
A B.C. Supreme Court awards Susan Hollis $95,000 in damages against Dow Corning. Hollis's implants had burst causing her pain and weakness.
September 1991
The FDA concludes that the manufacturers' safety data on silicone breast implants does not prove the devices are safe — or harmful. Manufacturers are told to submit further data. |
December 1991
Another lawsuit decision involving breast implants is handed down in San Francisco. $7.3 million (US) is given to Mariann Hopkins whose mixed connective- tissue disease is linked to her ruptured silicone breast implants. By the end of 1991, 137 individual lawsuits have been filed against Dow Corning.
January 1992
The FDA Commissioner, David Kessler, calls for a voluntary moratorium on the distribution or implantation of silicone breast implants until the FDA and an advisory panel have can review new information. Manufacturers agree. The market nose-dives. This moratorium is effective across the United States and Canada. Surgeons start to switch to saline implants and research for alternative implant materials sores.
February 1992
Many of the Dow Corning internal memos are released to the public.
March 1992
Dow Corning leaves the silicone breast implant business but continues to fund research into the safety of implants. Bristol-Myers Squibb and Bioplasty also leave the business.
April 1992
Dr. Kessler lifts the moratorium on silicone breast implants. However, the only women allowed to receive implant surgery are those undergoing breast reconstruction.
March 1994
A class action suit against Dow Corning, Baxter, Bristol-Myers Squibb/MEC, and 3M is finalized. Three women, who claim to have suffered either atypical lupus, neurological impairment, and a "silicone induced" auto-immune problem are awarded $27.9 million (US).
December 1994
By year's end, 19,092 individual lawsuits have been filed against Dow Corning.
May 1995
Dow Corning files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. They are facing 20,000 lawsuits, some with multiple plaintiffs and about 410,000 potential claims that have been filed in the global settlement. The bankruptcy essentially halts all litigation.
April 1998
Dow Corning reaches a settlement with 10,000 women in Ontario and Quebec. The company agrees to pay them $50 million (Can.) contingent on their bankruptcy issue being resolved.
July 1998
Plaintiffs agree to Dow Corning's offer of $3.2 billion (US) to settle tens of thousands of claims of injury from silicone breast implants. The agreement will let the plaintiffs receive money within a year and also enable Dow Corning to emerge from bankruptcy proceedings. The settlement affects 170,000 women, including women in Canada.
February, 1998
Three thousand women in Quebec and Ontario share $22 million in a settlement with U.S. implant manufacturer Baxter Healthcare.
February 11, 1999
Dow Corning settles class action lawsuit for $39 million, with Canadian women outside Quebec and Ontario. There are separate lawsuits in those two provinces.
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Breast Implants — Timeline
1930s and '40s
Prostitutes in Japan start to have substances such as paraffin, sponges and non-medical grade silicone injected into their breasts to enlarge them. They do this because they believe American servicemen like larger breasts.
1960
The first silicone breast implants are developed in the United States by two plastic surgeons in Texas: Frank Gerow and Thomas Cronin.
1962
Timmie Jean Lindsey becomes the first woman to receive silicone breast implants in the United States. Breast implant surgeries start to take place in Canada around this time.
1970s
Scientists within Dow Corning Corp. voice concerns over safety. The memos are kept quiet.
1976
The Federal Drug Administration starts regulating medical devices, including implants.
1977
An attorney in Houston wins the first lawsuit for a Cleveland woman involving breast implants. The woman claims that her implants ruptured and operations to fix the problem caused pain and suffering. She is awarded a $170,000 (US) settlement from Dow Corning.
January 1982
The FDA proposes to classify silicone breast implants into a Class III category. This would mean manufacturers would have to provide safety data in order to keep their products on the market.
1984
Stern vs. Dow Corning legal battle takes place in San Francisco. Stern's attorney produces a number of internal Dow Corning documents that had been discovered in a Dow. The jury finds that Maria Stern's systemic auto-immune disease is caused by her silicone breast implants. She's awarded $211,000 (US) in compensatory damages and $1.5 million in punitive damages. The evidence is sealed by a court order.
June 1988
The FDA categorizes breast implants into a Class III meaning it's a high risk product. They give manufacturers until 1991 to prove the safety and effectiveness of their product. At this time a progressive shift from silicone implants to saline implants starts to take place in both the U.S. and Canada.
May 1990
A B.C. Supreme Court awards Susan Hollis $95,000 in damages against Dow Corning. Hollis's implants had burst causing her pain and weakness.
September 1991
The FDA concludes that the manufacturers' safety data on silicone breast implants does not prove the devices are safe — or harmful. Manufacturers are told to submit further data. |
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December 1991
Another lawsuit decision involving breast implants is handed down in San Francisco. $7.3 million (US) is given to Mariann Hopkins whose mixed connective- tissue disease is linked to her ruptured silicone breast implants. By the end of 1991, 137 individual lawsuits have been filed against Dow Corning.
January 1992
The FDA Commissioner, David Kessler, calls for a voluntary moratorium on the distribution or implantation of silicone breast implants until the FDA and an advisory panel have can review new information. Manufacturers agree. The market nose-dives. This moratorium is effective across the United States and Canada. Surgeons start to switch to saline implants and research for alternative implant materials sores.
February 1992
Many of the Dow Corning internal memos are released to the public.
March 1992
Dow Corning leaves the silicone breast implant business but continues to fund research into the safety of implants. Bristol-Myers Squibb and Bioplasty also leave the business.
April 1992
Dr. Kessler lifts the moratorium on silicone breast implants. However, the only women allowed to receive implant surgery are those undergoing breast reconstruction.
March 1994
A class action suit against Dow Corning, Baxter, Bristol-Myers Squibb/MEC, and 3M is finalized. Three women, who claim to have suffered either atypical lupus, neurological impairment, and a "silicone induced" auto-immune problem are awarded $27.9 million (US). |
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December 1994
By year's end, 19,092 individual lawsuits have been filed against Dow Corning.
May 1995
Dow Corning files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. They are facing 20,000 lawsuits, some with multiple plaintiffs and about 410,000 potential claims that have been filed in the global settlement. The bankruptcy essentially halts all litigation.
April 1998
Dow Corning reaches a settlement with 10,000 women in Ontario and Quebec. The company agrees to pay them $50 million (Can.) contingent on their bankruptcy issue being resolved.
July 1998
Plaintiffs agree to Dow Corning's offer of $3.2 billion (US) to settle tens of thousands of claims of injury from silicone breast implants. The agreement will let the plaintiffs receive money within a year and also enable Dow Corning to emerge from bankruptcy proceedings. The settlement affects 170,000 women, including women in Canada.
February, 1998
Three thousand women in Quebec and Ontario share $22 million in a settlement with U.S. implant manufacturer Baxter Healthcare.
February 11, 1999
Dow Corning settles class action lawsuit for $39 million, with Canadian women outside Quebec and Ontario. There are separate lawsuits in those two provinces.
June 2001
Class action suits in three provinces seek damages from Health Canada, arguing that the department failed to pull implants from the market, despite having evidence they were harmful. |
