Personal Injury Law

Boston Products Liability Lawsuits Filed Over DePuy ASR Hip Devices

By Altman & Altman

More than four months after DePuy Orthopaedics Inc. and Johnson & Johnson announced the recall of its DePuy ASR(TM) Hip Resurfacing System and ASR(TM) XL Acetabular System, our Boston hip implant defect lawyers continue to be available around the clock to offer a free consultation to those that may have reason for a claim. Altman & Altman, LLP is currently handling a number of Massachusetts products liability lawsuits related to the DePuy ASR hip replacement recall. Contact us immediately by sending us an email or by calling (800) 481-6199.

The hip replacement devices were recalled after a number of patients who had used the DePuy systems ended up having to undergo another hip replacement procedure. Revision surgery is not a painless medical procedure to go through and recover from once let alone a second time?especially if the patient is an elderly senior or someone who is suffering from other health issues. Yet even though about 93,000 people have been implanted with a DePuy hip system, the National Hip Replacement Registry reported last month that only 60% of DePuy hip implant patients had been told about the recall.

Per unpublished information from the National Joint Registry (NJR) of England and Wales, there is an approximately 12% five-year revision rate for the ASR(TM) Hip Resurfacing System and an about 13% revision rate for the ASR(TM) XL Acetabular System. The risk of a revision surgery appeared to go up if the patient was female or had been fitted with an ASR head size that was below 50 mm in diameter.

Signs that there may be problems with your DePuy hip replacement device include walking difficulties, swelling, and pain. While these symptoms are normal soon after receiving the hip implant, a patient shouldn?t experience them and they aren?t supposed to recur. If the symptoms do persist or resume, this may indicate that:

? The implant has come loose.
? The bone around the implant may have fractured.
? The parts of the implant that are supposed to move against each other may have become dislocated.

Also, over time, the metal components of an ASR Hip can generate small microscopic particles as they move against each other. Unfortunately, some patients may experience a reaction to these particles, which can cause joint swelling, pain, and may even damage the bones, muscles, and nerves in the hip area.

DePuy Orthopaedics Voluntarily Recalls ASR(TM) Hip System, Johnson & Johnson, August 26, 2010

Related Web Resources:
An Estimated 93,000 Depuy Hip Implants Patients In Danger, Nutrition and Diet News, December 15, 2010

ASR Hip System Recall Guide

National Hip Replacement Registry

DePuy Orthopaedics Inc.

Full post as published by Boston Injury Lawyer Blog on January 04, 2011 (boomark / email).