Melbourne law firm Slater and Gordon is urging women to join a class-action lawsuit against the German pharmaceutical giant Bayer over the "Essure" contraceptive device that is implicated in medical problems for women around the world.

The Essure is a flexible coil insert made of nickel and plastic which is placed into each of the patient's Fallopian tubes.  There, it triggers an inflammation reaction; a barrier of scar tissue eventually forms to block the tubes and permanently prevent pregnancy. 

But thousands of patients worldwide have complained of perforations, nickel poisoning, chronic pain, migration of the device, allergic reactions, and immune-type reactions.  Slater and Gordon a complete hysterectomy was the only safe way for many patients to get rid of the device and all of its alleged problems.

"Essure was hailed as the new wave of contraceptive devices," said Slater and Gordon associate Ebony Birchall.  "Unlike traditional permanent contraceptive surgery, Essure was marketed as being fast, effective and minimally invasive, it could be inserted in your doctor's office.  However, for the women who have experienced complications, it has been incredibly damaging."

Last month, Bayer said: "We continue to stand behind the product's safety and efficacy, which are demonstrated by an extensive body of research."

Around the same time, the Essure device was withdrawn from the US market and Bayer had halted sales in other regions for "marketing reasons".  That'sa year and two months after the Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) announced the company pulled the device out of the country "for business reasons" and "there will be no further implantations of Essure in Australia".

Last October, the British Medical Journal published research that found Essure was associated with a more than 10-fold higher risk of additional surgery, equivalent to around 21 additional re-operations per 1,000 patients.  The authors warned the device was a "serious safety concern".

"The hysteroscopic approach was reported to be associated with a higher risk of unintended pregnancy and has a three-month post-procedure waiting period before sterilisation becomes effective," the study found.  "Other reported complications related to device include pelvic pain, haemorrhage and device migration or incompatibility that can lead to re-operation."

The BBC reports Bayer claims to have sold 750,000 devices around the world.