Sylvester v. Mentor Corp.

663 So. 2d 176, 95 La.App. 3 Cir. 67, 1995 La. App. LEXIS 2490, 1995 WL 553614
CourtLouisiana Court of Appeal
DecidedSeptember 20, 1995
Docket95-67
StatusPublished
Cited by4 cases

This text of 663 So. 2d 176 (Sylvester v. Mentor Corp.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Louisiana Court of Appeal primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Sylvester v. Mentor Corp., 663 So. 2d 176, 95 La.App. 3 Cir. 67, 1995 La. App. LEXIS 2490, 1995 WL 553614 (La. Ct. App. 1995).

Opinion

663 So.2d 176 (1995)

David SYLVESTER, Plaintiff-Appellant,
v.
MENTOR CORPORATION, Defendant-Appellee.

No. 95-67.

Court of Appeal of Louisiana, Third Circuit.

September 20, 1995.

*177 Roy F. Amedee Jr., Laplace, for David Sylvester.

Benjamin Franklin Davis, Metairie, for Mentor Corporation.

Before DOUCET, C.J., and THIBODEAUX and PETERS, JJ.

PETERS, Judge.

The plaintiff, David Sylvester, brought this action against the defendant, Mentor Corporation, as the manufacturer of the Mentor Alpha I inflatable penile prosthesis. The plaintiff alleged that on April 29, 1991, he purchased the penile prosthesis and that approximately nine months after purchase, it broke or malfunctioned. Sylvester also alleged the defendant was guilty of "gross, wanton, willful and inexcusable negligence" (1) in producing and manufacturing a defective implant and holding it out for sale with constructive or actual knowledge of its condition, (2) in failing to warn of the possibility of breakage or malfunction, (3) in defectively designing the prosthesis, and (4) in defectively constructing the prosthesis. Additionally, the plaintiff alleged liability under theories of redhibition and strict liability.

Mentor filed a motion for summary judgment contending that Sylvester's claims were preempted by federal law. In support of its *178 motion, Mentor filed the affidavit of Lynn Breckenridge, its Regulatory Affairs Manager. In the affidavit, Ms. Breckenridge alleged that she has prepared submissions and overseen the preparation of "510(k) Pre-Market Notifications" to the Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for medical devices manufactured by Mentor; that the Mentor Alpha I inflatable penile prosthesis is classified as a Class III device by the FDA; and that on April 12, 1983, the Mentor Alpha I device was cleared for marketing by the FDA as a result of a 510(k) submission. Ms. Breckenridge further alleged that the Mentor Alpha I is marketed as a prescription medical device and contains the appropriate labeling required by the FDA.

After hearing, the trial court granted Mentor's motion. Sylvester then filed a motion for new trial, which the trial court denied. Sylvester has appealed contending that the trial court erred in dismissing his claims on the basis of federal preemption and in finding that the penile prosthesis was certified as a Class III medical device.[1]

OPINION

The Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act of 1938, 21 U.S.C. § 301 et seq., "empowered the FDA to require pre-market testing of drugs, as well as post-marketing controls over manufacturers." Ministry of Health, Province of Ont., Can. v. Shiley Inc., 858 F.Supp. 1426, 1433 (C.D.Cal.1994). The Act was amended by the Medical Device Amendments of 1976 (MDA), 21 U.S.C. § 360c et seq., to include regulatory authority by the FDA over certain devices intended for human use.

The MDA classifies certain devices intended for human use as Class I, Class II, or Class III devices. 21 U.S.C. § 360c(a)(1)(A)(C). Class I devices are those which are subject only to general controls and therefore are loosely regulated. 21 U.S.C. § 360c(a)(1)(A). Class II devices are those for which general controls are inadequate to provide the consumer with a reasonable assurance of their safety and effectiveness and therefore are subject to special controls. 21 U.S.C. § 360c(a)(1)(B). Class III devices are those which cannot be classified as Class I or Class II devices because insufficient information exists to determine that the controls provided for Class I or Class II devices would provide reasonable assurance of the safety and effectiveness of the devices and which are represented to be for use in supporting or sustaining human life or use which is of substantial importance in preventing impairment of human health or present a potential unreasonable risk of illness or injury. 21 U.S.C. § 360c(a)(1)(C). Penile inflatable implants are Class III devices. 21 C.F.R. § 876.3350.

Class III devices are generally subject to a stringent premarket approval process. 21 U.S.C. § 360c(a)(1)(C). This process involves close scrutiny of the device, the ultimate goal of which is to obtain approval of the device. See Fender v. Medtronic, Inc., 887 F.Supp. 1326 (E.D.Cal.1995).

FDA approval of a premarket application shows the FDA has reviewed a device's testing, design specifications, intended use, manufacturing method, performance standard, and labelling, see 21 U.S.C. § 360e(c)(1), and decided the device is safe and effective, see id. § 360c(a)(2).

Martello v. Ciba Vision Corp., 42 F.3d 1167, 1169 (8th Cir.1994).

However, certain Class III devices currently marketed are not required to have premarket approval unless specifically subject to a regulation requiring such approval. 21 U.S.C. § 360e(b)(1). Such devices include those which were introduced or delivered for introduction into interstate commerce for commercial distribution before May 28, 1976, or are of a type so introduced or delivered and are substantially equivalent to another device within that type. 21 U.S.C. *179 § 360e(b)(1)(A), (B). In such a case, an applicant is only required to present a premarket notification submission to the FDA at least ninety days before the device is to be introduced or delivered for introduction into interstate commerce for commercial distribution. 21 C.F.R. § 807.81(a). This is also known as a premarket notification or 510k process and is the type of process the device in this case underwent. The ultimate goal of the premarket notification process is to obtain a finding of substantial equivalence so that the applicant may proceed to market the device. See 21 C.F.R. § 807.100; Fender, 887 F.Supp. 1326 (E.D.Cal.1995). In fact, 21 C.F.R. § 807.97 provides in part that a

determination ... that the device ... is substantially equivalent ... does not in any way denote official approval of the device. Any representation that creates an impression of official approval of a device because of complying with the premarket notification regulations is misleading and constitutes misbranding.
(Emphasis added).

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Bluebook (online)
663 So. 2d 176, 95 La.App. 3 Cir. 67, 1995 La. App. LEXIS 2490, 1995 WL 553614, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/sylvester-v-mentor-corp-lactapp-1995.