Another patient implanted with a metal-on-metal hip implant device has alleged the device has caused her serious side effects that led to her having to undergo revision surgery. The M2a Magnum™ hip implant is manufactured by Biomet.
Revision surgery is a painful, complex procedure in which a faulty device must be surgically removed and replaced with a different device. The two surgical procedures must often be handled separately, leaving patients bed-bound in the interim.
National law firm, Parker Waichman LLP, has filed a lawsuit on behalf of the Illinois woman and alleges that her Biomet M2a Magnum™ Hip Implant is defective and forced her to have to undergo additional revision surgery. The woman alleges that her Biomet M2a Magnum™ hip implant is defective and caused pain and loosening in the hip and the lawsuit alleges that Biomet knew that the metal-on-metal hip implant was faulty, but did not warn the plaintiff or other consumers, due to financial interests. Parker Waichman filed the lawsuit on February 6th in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois (Case No. 1:13-cv-00983). Biomet, Inc. and Biomet Orthopedics, LLC have been named as defendants.
The complaint states that the woman was implanted with the Biomet M2a Magnum™ in her right hip. Thereafter, the Biomet implant failed, allegedly due to the defective nature of the all-metal hip device. This failure, according to the lawsuit, allegedly caused pain and loosening in her right hip, which ultimately forced her to undergo an additional revision surgery. The lawsuit also alleges that, at the time she received the implant, Biomet was aware of over 100 reports of adverse events linked to the device, but did not warn the plaintiff, or the public, due to financial interests.
The woman claims she would not have agreed to being implanted with the M2a Magnum™ if Biomet had not allegedly misrepresented the device. She is suing for economic damages due to lost wages and medical expenses, severe and possibly permanent injuries, pain, suffering, and emotional distress.
The lawsuit also alleges that the Biomet M2a Magnum™ is defective due to its metal-on-metal design. Since the device uses a “monoblock” system, there is no option to have an acetabular liner, which forces the metal components to rub against each other with the full weight of the body, the lawsuit alleges.
Meanwhile, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has recently addressed the risk of all-metal hip replacements, issuing new guidelines advising patients with metal-on-metal hip implants to undergo physical examinations, diagnostic imaging, and metal ion testing, as needed. The FDA is also proposing stricter regulations that would require manufacturers to prove their metal hip implants are safe and effective before selling them. Currently, hip makers receive approval simply by showing that their implant is sufficiently similar to a previously approved device.
