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Metal-on-Metal Hip Implants Prone to Early Failure & Metallosis

New metal hip implants have been shown to be no more effective and sometimes even more problematic than much older models.
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C.L. Mike Schmidt Published by C.L. Mike Schmidt

Manufacturers of newer metal-on-metal hip replacement devices have touted their products as being the right choice for younger, more active patients. But for Susy Mansfield and thousands of other artificial hip replacement patients, they’ve been a bad choice. In fact, the purported “revolutionary” new metal hip implants have been shown to be no more effective and sometimes even more problematic than much older models.

DePuy Hip Update 1/23/13: Newly disclosed court documents have revealed that a 2011 internal investigation conducted by Johnson & Johnson on its much-troubled DePuy ASR hip implant estimated that the device would fail within five years in nearly 40% of recipients. For reasons still unclear, the company failed to make this information public while simultaneously downplaying the potential health complications associated with its metal-on-metal hip.

Hip Implant Recall Update 7/10/12: Michigan-based Stryker Orthopaedics is now recalling two brands of devices used in conjunction with artificial hips in hip replacement surgeries. To date, the devices in question – the Stryker Rejuvenate and ABG II Modular-Neck Stem – have been linked to at least 45 adverse event reports (AERS) submitted to the FDA by individuals who claim to have suffered severe pain and/or tissue swelling.

Free Metal-on-Metal Hip Implant Lawsuit Evaluation: If you or a loved one has suffered a serious injury after being implanted with a metal-on-metal hip replacement device, you should contact our law firm immediately. You may be entitled to compensation by filing a suit against the manufacturer of the artificial hip and we can help.

Listen to NPR’s report on metal-on-metal hip implants here:

What’s the problem?

March 19, 2012 – When Susy Mansfield needed a hip replacement in 2009, her doctor chose to use a new and untested metal-on-metal device for the procedure. He told the 57-year-old that she was still young, and that metal works better and lasts longer than more traditional hip replacement devices.

Most conventional artificial hips are made of tough plastic and metal, but only have an expected lifetime of about 10-15 years in younger, active patients. So makers of the newer, all-metal devices have marketed their products as being superior and longer lasting than traditional models. But for Mansfield and scores of others, this has not been the case.

Mansfield was recently forced to undergo a second major hip surgery to remove the defective device she was implanted with just over three years ago. Followup x-rays from the initial procedure found that the all-metal hip replacement had been eating away at the surrounding bone and soft tissue.

Since her first surgery, Mansfield has been suffering from practically unbearable persistent pain. “It’s terrible,” she said, “It’s a hot pain … that’s there all the time. Every step is agony.” The hip pain is so severe that Mansfield has been unable to function without prescription painkillers.

A short time after her first operation, Mansfield read a newspaper article about the serious side effects that had been increasingly reported in metal-on-metal hip implant recipients. She immediately called her surgeon’s office to ask if she had been implanted with one, but the secretary assured her that she hadn’t. But after doing some independent research, Mansfield found that she had indeed received a recalled DePuy metal-on-metal hip replacement.

At the time of Mansfield’s first surgery, approximately 30% of hip replacement procedures involved metal-on-metal prosthetics. Since there are about a quarter million hip implant surgeries performed every year, that means approximately 80,000 were implanted with all-metal devices. Since news of the complications associated with the products surfaced, far fewer of the devices are now being implanted, although they are still being marketed in the United States and abroad.

It has been estimated that over 500,000 Americans currently have metal-on-metal hip implants. To date, more than 5,000 patients allegedly injured by the devices have filed lawsuits against manufacturers around the country.

Related Article: Wright Conserve Hip Litigation

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Do You Have a Metal on Metal Hip Implant Lawsuit?

The Product Liability & Defective Drug Litigation Group at our law firm is an experienced team of trial lawyers that focus on the representation of plaintiffs in metal-on-metal hip implant lawsuits. We are handling individual litigation nationwide and currently accepting new injury cases in all 50 states.

Free Metal-on-Metal Hip Implant Lawsuit Evaluation: If you or a loved one has suffered a serious injury after being implanted with a metal-on-metal hip implant device, you should contact our law firm immediately. You may be entitled to compensation by filing a metal-on-metal hip implant injury suit and we can help.

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