The Bleeding Edge (2018) on Netflix
TV-1420181h 39mDocumentary
Patients injured by Essure, artificial hips and vaginal mesh describe what the devices did to them. The devices reach the market with less study than drugs receive.
- Netflix4.4/5
- IMDb7.6/103,309 votes
- Rotten Tomatoes100%
Trailer
Plot summary
Interviews with patients and physicians examine a $400 billion medical device industry and the path its products take to the American market, where a device can be cleared for sale with less clinical study than a drug requires and without any testing in people. Women given Essure, a permanent contraceptive made by Bayer, report pain and lost pregnancies. Patients with artificial hips develop cobalt poisoning. Vaginal mesh leaves others injured. Their accounts point to weak oversight, companies that shield themselves and financial incentives that keep risky products in use. The FDA's 510(k) pathway, which clears many devices without trials in humans, comes under scrutiny as the injured seek answers.
Cast
Did you know?!Facts and trivia about The Bleeding Edge (2018)
Can contain spoilers, watch the movie first.
- A week before The Bleeding Edge was released, Bayer pulled its birth-control device Essure from the U.S. market; Essure was one of the devices most heavily criticized in the film. Entertainment Weekly then added the documentary to its list of "documentaries that have changed the world".
