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A New York Times editorial Feb. 10 concluded that Johnson & Johnson’s DePuy Orthopaedics “clearly has a lot of explaining to do” in the face of claims that the corporation in 2008 concealed flaws in one of its since-recalled metal-on-metal hip implants.

The grinding of metal surfaces has caused many metal-on-metal hip implants to fail, causing an assortment of serious conditions, including metallosis. In one of its “Products and Medical Procedures” updates, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration wrote that the adverse reactions of metal-on-metal hip implants include “infection, loosening, bone loss, device or bone fracture, and joint dislocation.”

Additionally, according to the FDA, complications such as cardiomyopathy, hearing and visual changes, renal impairment and thyroid dysfunction could result from the release of metal particles, which can lead to “deterioration of the tissue around the joint, loosening of the implant and failure of the device. Metal ions from a metal-on-metal implant will enter the bloodstream.”

Although some devices have been recalled, the injuries resulting from defective metal-on-metal hip implants have lingered. So have the excruciating effects of surgical revision.

Metal-on-metal hip implant lawsuits have been filed to help victims receive the compensation for medical expenses and other losses linked to the unreasonable health risks posed by, as plaintiffs would assert, preventable device failure.

The metal-on-metal hip implant attorneys at Reich & Binstock offer free consultations to anyone whose injuries may be related to the installment of any of the following all-metal hip implants:

  • Biomet M2a Hip Implants
  • Biomet M2a-Magnum
  • Biomet Regenerex
  • Birmingham Hip Replacement
  • Birmingham Hip Resurfacing (BHR) system
  • DePuy ASR XL Acetabular System
  • DePuy ASR Hip Resurfacing System
  • DePuy Pinnacle Acetabular Cup System
  • DePuy PINNACLE ULTAMET Metal Liner
  • Portland Orthopaedics Ltd. M-COR Modular Hip System
  • RingLoc + Modular Acetabular System
  • Stryker Hip Implants
  • Wright CONSERVE Total Resurfacing Hip System
  • Wright PROFEMUR Hip Implant
  • Zimmer Durom Cup
  • Zimmer Continuum Acetabular System

DePuy voluntarily recalled its ASR XL Acetabular Hip System in August 2010, as the FDA explained, “because of new, unpublished data from the UK joint registry indicating the revision rates within 5 years were approximately 13 percent.”

Even higher device-failure rates have been reported.

Comprehensively studying the performance of all large-diameter metal-on-metal total hip replacements, the British Hip Society and the British Orthopaedic Association presented two years ago its so-called “well researched and audited results of these devices,” which indicated “a higher than anticipated early failure rate. These range from 21 percent revision rate at 4 years (potentially rising to 35 percent if all currently known painful implants progress to revision) to 49 percent at 6 years for the ASR XL device. Other devices have a revision or impending revision rate of 12–15 percent at 5 years.”

The product liability attorneys at Reich & Binstock have a proven track record in handling oft-complex medical device failure litigation. For a free consultation, Reich & Binstock may be reached by an electronic request for a free case evaluation through its Web site, www.reichandbinstock.com, or toll-free at 1-866-LAW-2400.

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