Depuy Medical Device Product Liability

Why you need a personal injury lawyer.

Depuy ASR Hip Replacement & Depuy Pinnacle Hip Replacement Lawsuits

Personal injury lawyers often handle product liability cases and dangerous or defective products. Consumer products are often recalled because they cause harm, from pharmaceuticals like Fen-Phen to child car seats, bicycle parts, and hip and knee replacement orthopedics, cars like the recent Prius lawsuits, or the infamous Pinto; the list goes on and on. The Depuy hip replacement recalled ASR implant and the not yet recalled Depuy Pinnacle implant have been referred to as,"the biggest disaster in the history of orthopedics." [Dr. Thomas Joyce, a biomedical engineering professor at Newcastle University (United Kingdom)]

Wall Street Journal, "Hip Joints Set Off New Rush to Court" July 8, 2011 discussed the Depuy litigation, both for the recalled Depuy ASR hip implant as well as the not yet recalled Depuy Pinnacle hip implant (Pinnacle has rising numbers of lawsuits even though it was recently approved for use in the USA by the FDA):

[...] the litigation could expose the New Brunswick, N.J., health-care company to $1 billion-plus in potential liability and other costs, according to a Wells Fargo analyst.

A spokeswoman for DePuy declined to comment on the liability issue, except to say that J&J boosted its reserves for product-liability costs, for products including the recalled hip joints, by $570 million last year. In addition, J&J, which had 2010 sales of $61.6 billion, has put aside about $280 million to cover surgeries and other medical care for patients with those joints. [...]

The outcome of the ASR lawsuits may hinge on when DePuy learned the devices were faulty. A suit Mr. Taschner filed on behalf of hip-replacement patient Maurice Brigham accuses DePuy and J&J of knowing two years before the recall that the devices failed "early in a high percentage of patients."

New DePuy hip implant gets FDA approval amid lawsuit over old one

Amid lawsuits concerning its Pinnacle metal-on-metal hip implant, Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) subsidiary DePuy Orthopaedics won U.S. Food & Drug Administration clearance for its next-generation Pinnacle ceramic-on-metal hip implant.

Depuy Pinnacle Hip Replacement

Patients who received DePuy Pinnacle implants have reported a variety of symptoms, including:

• Pain
• Popping
• Grinding
• Elevated levels of Cobalt and Chromium in their blood streams
• Fluid-filled cysts under the skin
• Soft tissue necrosis
• Loosening of the hip implant
• Dislocation of the hip implant Infection
• Bone fracture
• The need for revision surgery

Many patients have reported the growth of cyst-like formations under the surface of the skin.  When biopsied by medical professionals, these cysts have been found to contain high levels of metal ions.  In addition, the surrounding tissue is often gray or black instead of a healthy pink color.

Britain's Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency has warned that metal-on-metal hip implants can produce metal shavings.  This metal debris forms when the metal socket and the metal ball of the hip implant come into contact.  The agency says this metal debris can kill soft tissue in the body and adversely impact the effects of a hip revision surgery. 

Moreover, Britain's Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency has set forth specific recommendations for those patients who have had metal-on-metal hip implants. 

Depuy ASR Hip Implant Or Depuy Pinnacle Hip Implant

If you have received either of the recalled DePuy hip implant systems, you may be asked to contact DePuy to establish a claim. You are not required to file a claim with DePuy to pursue your legal rights. In addition, you should not sign any documents purporting to release DePuy from its legal responsibilities.

In some cases, DePuy is offering to pay some portion of a revision surgery expense. However, DePuy will not pay medical expenses in all cases. In addition, the amount covered by DePuy is limited to what DePuy independently determines is reasonable. DePuy will not compensate you for your lost wages, your pain and suffering or your future medical needs.

However, in stark contrast to the Depuy offer of only paying some portion of your revision expense, the law allows you to seek the total billed amount of your medical treatment, the full amount of your lost wages, the total value of your future medical needs, as well as pain and suffering damages.

Protect Your Legal Rights During Revision Surgery

If you have been told that you require revision surgery, contact The Goetz Law Firm today to protect your legal rights and talk to attorney Dean Goetz one on one about your situation. Consultations are free and there is no obligation.

DePuy has asked hospitals and health care providers to give DePuy removed implant and tissue samples.

At The Goetz Law Firm, we have protocols in place to protect your legal rights during your revision surgery. We will ensure that DePuy does not deprive you of your right to maintain possession of valuable evidence in your case. We will fight DePuy for you, always putting your interests first.