Another defective <"https://www.yourlawyer.com/topics/overview/DePuy-Hip-Implant-Recall-Johnson-and-Johnson">DePuy hip implant lawsuit has been filed, this time in Texas. Richard Dykes said that if he knew about the issues with the DePuy device, he would never have undergone hip replacement surgery with the faulty medical device, said The Southeast Texas Record.
The defective DePuy Hip Implant lawsuit was filed on March 18 in the Eastern District of Texas, Tyler Division, against DePuy Orthopedics Inc. and Johnson & Johnson Inc. and names his wife, Debra, as a plaintiff in the action, noted The Southeast Texas Record.
Dykes underwent hip replacement in 2008 and received “an ASR XL Acetabular System with an AML femoral stem implanted in his left hip,†said The Southeast Texas Record. Dykes’ lawsuit alleges that since he was implanted with the dangerous device he’s had trouble sitting and standing, and suffers from increased metal levels in his body; Dykes is preparing for more surgery. Dykes’ lawsuit also alleges that the ASR XL Acetabular System and ASR Hip Resurfacing Platform, tend to fail within two years of implant, which is significantly shorter than advertised.
The DePuy ASR Hip Implant System is a metal-on-metal hip device made of chromium and cobalt, consisting of a cup that’s implanted into the hip with a ball joint that connects to the leg. In August, DePuy Orthopaedics, a division of Johnson & Johnson, issued a recall for the ASR XL Acetabular Hip Replacement System after data from the National Joint Registry of England and Wales showed that 1 out of 8 patients (12%-13%) who had received the devices had to undergo revision surgery within five years of receiving the surgery.
The Southwest Texas Record pointed out that Dykes’ lawsuit alleged a variety of other issues that can arise following implantation with the defective medical device such as reduced mobility, tissue swelling that can lead to the death or injury of tissue and bone, complex revision surgery and recovery, and increased risks of injury or death due to a more complex surgery involving body areas that could be injured and on less bone surface than the original surgery.
Dykes also brought up the timing of the recall, which he and many others allege, should have taken place years earlier when complaints were first made to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) about the faulty device, added The Southwest Texas Record. The lawsuit also cites “negligence, construction or composition defect, design defect, strict products liability, inadequate warning, and breach of express warranty,†and Dykes seeks “compensation for economic and non-economic losses including medical expenses, pain and suffering, mental anguish, physical impairment, disfigurement, loss of earning capacity, loss of companionship and consortium, and loss of household services, punitive damages, attorneys’ fees and costs and interest,†added the Southwest Texas Record.
We recently wrote that an Illinois man who underwent revision surgery because of a defective DePuy implant is now worried his life will never be the same. According to a report in The State-Journal Register, Larry Barnett fears the damage caused by the DePuy ASR hip replacement will prevent him from taking part in activities he once enjoyed, such as horseback riding and water skiing.
It is believed that many of the complications linked to the DePuy ASR XL Acetabular hip implant are caused by wearing of the metal components, which can allow cobalt and chromium shavings to make their way into patients’ bloodstreams. This can cause a reaction known as metallosis, which can result in tissue breakdown, bone loss, and even the formation of non-cancerous tumors. The shedding of metal shavings can also cause cobalt poisoning, a disorder that, if left untreated, can put patients at risk of tinnitus (ringing in the ears), vertigo, deafness, blindness, optic nerve atrophy, convulsions, headaches, peripheral neuropathy, cardiomyopathy, and hypothyroidism.
