Stryker Trident Class Action Lawsuit Filed Over Squeaking Hip Implants

Pain, discomfort, revision surgeries and an annoying squeaking noise are all complaints forming the basis of a recently filed class action lawsuit against Stryker over its Trident artificial hip system. 

The Stryker Trident hip class action lawsuit was filed by Raymond Chasse, Jr. in U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts on September 12, seeking to represent all Massachusetts residents who received the allegedly defective hip implant and subsequently experienced complications.

According to the complaint (PDF), design problems with the Stryker Trident hip can cause users to experience pain and discomfort. In addition, it also can allegedly cause a squeaking sound that is audible outside of the body.

The class encompasses at least 40 Massachusetts residents, according to the complaint, specifically including all residents of the state that received a Stryker Trident system since 2003 and had their artificial hip fail. Failure is described as involving pain, discomfort, an audible squeaking noise from the replaced hip or the need for revision surgery to have the hip implant removed.

In 2007, the FDA issued a warning to Stryker about manufacturing problems with the implant, indicating that the company was violating federal regulations at its manufacturing plant in Cork, Ireland.

According to the letter, the company failed to adequately address “continual” reports of problems with Stryker Trident hip replacement parts that were received by the manufacturer between January 2005 and April 2007.

As a result of a subsequent internal investigation, Stryker discovered additional problems with products manufactured at a plant in Ireland and issued a hip recall on January 22, 2008 for certain Trident Acetabular PSL Cups and the Trident Hemispherical Cups, after it was discovered that contamination levels at the plant resulted in parts not meeting the proper standards for sterility.

A number of individual product liability Stryker Trident hip lawsuits have been filed by people who experienced problems with the implants, alleging that the company manufactured and sold the device without properly researching the design or providing adequate warning about the risk that individuals may experience serious complications, which often require additional hip surgery to replace components.