Mesh implants are used by surgeons to reinforce weak tissue in operations for prolapse, stress incontinence (male and female), hernias, and some breast reconstructions. They are also used in some veterinary surgeries.

Most surgical mesh is a permanent polypropylene implant. Over time, it can harden, fragment, or twist, causing severe complications such as pain, infections, nerve and organ damage, autoimmune disorders, and allergic reactions. Reported conditions include UTIs, fibromyalgia, irritable bowel syndrome, lupus, psoriasis, and food intolerances. Similar issues are seen with biomesh made from pig or cow tissue.

Complications may arise immediately or years later, making the true scale of harm difficult to track. Removal is major, complex surgery and sometimes impossible. See our Surveys page for details of complications.

Pelvic mesh was introduced with minimal evidence and, for years, lacked a specific hospital code, meaning NHS data vastly underestimates those affected. New products continue to be approved under flimsy approval systems such as Europe’s “Equivalence” and the US 510(k), which allow devices to be cleared without robust safety trials. One Oxford professor even demonstrated that supermarket orange netting could meet approval criteria.

Globally, long-term complications remain poorly recorded.

For background reading on the role of industry funding in the mesh scandal this article by Jonathan Gornall describes how mesh became a four-letter word.

Campaign – what we do

• Financial redress; ongoing lobbying for compensation ℹ️ℹ️
• Improved pathways of care for all mesh injured patients ℹ️
• Advocate for Sunshine transparency legislation modelled on the US system ℹ️ℹ️
• Champion all nine First Do No Harm recommendations, a report we led on ℹ️ℹ️
• Secured the Medical Devices Outcomes Registry to track implant outcomes ℹ️ℹ️
• Influenced landmark APPRAISE study tracking patient outcomes after pelvic surgeries ℹ️ℹ️
• International awareness highlighting a need for fully informed patient consent ℹ️ℹ️
• Bad science; empower patients, policymakers and media to spot flawed research ℹ️ℹ️
• Mandatory reporting by doctors to the MHRA Yellow Card system ℹ️
• Advocate for fair legal time limits for harmed patients #raisethelimit ℹ️

📧 Get in touch: slingthemesh@gmail.com

Latest from Sling The Mesh

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  The mesh sling timeline: warnings ignored, profits protected, women paid the price
  In 2003 doctors warned if TVT mesh slings caused unexpected complications and needed removing on a wide scale it would have significant impact on women and the NHS. Two decades later, specialist mesh centres are overwhelmed, waiting lists are growing, access to treatment depends heavily on postcode, and there is still no universally agreed method for safely removing mesh without […]
• 
  $88 million for American hernia mesh injured man. What about UK patients?
  A jury in the United States has ordered Medtronic’s Covidien division to pay $88 million to a couple after finding that surgeons were not adequately warned about risks linked to the company’s Symbotex hernia mesh.
• 
  High Court Judge criticises surgeon for ‘cherry-picking’ evidence in mesh case
  Oxford surgeon Simon Jackson has been criticised by a High Court judge for giving evidence that was “wholly unsatisfactory” “cherry-picking” and “lacked balance” when he acted as medical expert for an NHS Health board defending a high value mesh case.
• 
  The mesh operation that took my career, my hobbies and my independence
  I had a successful colposuspension in 2000 to treat bladder leaks, and it worked perfectly for 17 years. Colposuspension is the traditional surgical treatment for stress urinary incontinence and does not involve the use of mesh. In 2017 after surgery for a bladder and bowel prolapse, I was advised to have a TVT mesh sling inserted as my bladder leaks […]
• 
  Don’t hide 70% of the money! Government transparency plans leave most industry payments in the dark
  The Cumberlege Review called for a mandatory, enforceable transparency system which would force industry to log the millions it gives to the UK health sector every year – this money has been proven to bias research and prescribing.
• 
  £929 million from Pharma to the UK health sector in one year
  Did you know that hundreds of millions are paid by industry to the UK healthcare sector every year? In 2025 it was £929 million. In 2024 it was £813 million.
• 
  Transparency should not be controversial – our fight for Sunshine legislation
  Thanks to the BMJ for covering the story of how six years on from the Cumberlege Review, and over a decade of advocacy from #slingthemesh and we’re still waiting for meaningful action on transparency around pharma and device payments to the health sector.
• 
  Andy Burnham highlights mesh campaigns in call for Hillsborough Law
  New Prime Minister Andy Burnham recognised the need for justice for women affected by Mesh, Primodos, Sodium Valproate and PIP implant scandals.
• 
  Derryn Hinch remembered – standing up for mesh injured women when others wouldn’t
  Our thoughts and condolences are with the family and friends of former Senator Derryn Hinch – the first Australian politician to take mesh injured women seriously and a huge support to the global mesh injured community.
• 
  Eight years after mesh sling suspension. Thousands of women spared from harm
  n July 2018, we achieved what many thought was impossible – the UK suspension of vaginal mesh sling surgery for stress urinary incontinence.
• 
  More than 100 MPs are urged to back pelvic mesh and valproate compensation
  We are backing calls for the Government to compensate women harmed by pelvic mesh and the epilepsy drug sodium valproate, as a key deadline approaches next month.
• 
  So Proud of my mum on BBC Breakfast
  My incredible mum was on BBC Breakfast this morning… and of course she was wearing clothes from my shop Unscripted! She was bravely sharing her story about pelvic mesh and the devastating impact it’s had on her life. Many of you will know my mum, Mandy, as one of our biggest shopaholics in store (I definitely know where I get […]