The Bleeding Edge

The LA Times

Kirby Dick is probably one of my favorite documentarians thanks to his work on films such as This Film is Not Yet Rated, The Invisible War, and The Hunting Ground. All these films focus on issues relating to being an American woman. This expose of the medical devices industry is similarly about the issues of womanhood, this time relating to our health and wellbeing. This documentary reports on the lack of regulation on all medical devices, and how reckless their creators are; this may be one of the most shocking documentaries I have seen this year.

Medical devices have to go through less rigorous testing than pharmaceutical drugs, and they are often pushed by doctors who don’t know how to use them, implement them, or caution their patients. This lends to a lot of complications, misinformation, and even death. The people that Dick interviewed for this film have been greatly changed by the results of their surgeries and there’s little recourse for them. Our health care system already has so many problems, but direct to doctor marketing is one of the biggest, and has resulted in many problems for Americans. Two medical devices get the most coverage in this documentary and they both relate to women’s health: Essure and vaginal mesh. One creates permanent birth control via cauterizing fallopian tubes, and the other helps strengthen the pelvic floors of women who have given birth. The issues relating to each of these devices will astound you. I visibly shook during the interviews because I could barely handle what these women were saying.

Another amazing aspect of this film is that it’s an actual game changer for the industry. This is one of those eye opening documentaries that changes people’s perspectives to the nth degree, similar to Morgan Spurlock’s Super Size Me or Gabriel Cowerthwaite’s Blackfish. There are many tips for going to the doctor that patients need to adhere to, and watching this film will give you a little bit of insight into the phrase, “New is better.” In this case new is untested, new is dangerous, and new is infuriatingly common.