Wright Profemur Z Hip Lawsuit Filed Over Failed Conserve Plus Cup

A Colorado woman has filed a product liability lawsuit against the makers of the Wright Profemur-Z Total Hip System after the Wright Conserve Plus cup used in the hip replacement system failed to properly attach to her hip, leaving it loose in her body. 

The Wright Profemur Z hip lawsuit was filed by Janet Pommrehn on January 26 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado. The lawsuit names Wright Medical Technology, Inc. and Wright Medical Group, Inc. as defendants.

According to the complaint, Pommrehn received a Wright Profemur-Z Total Hip System in her left hip in April 2008 as part of total left hip replacement. Part of the Wright hip implant was an acetabular cup called the Wright Conserve Plus. The cup was supposed to fuse with bone over time, which would lodge it firmly in place. However, the plaintiff alleges the cup failed to fuse as a result of design defects.

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As a result of the Wright Profemur Z hip replacement problems, Pommrehn experienced intense pain and eventually required hip revision surgery. At that time, it was discovered that the Wright Conserve Cup was loose inside her hip, barely connected by fibrous tissue, the lawsuit claims.

The Wright Profemur Total Hip System was approved in the United States by the FDA through the controversial 510(K) premarket approval process, which means that the company just had to show that it was substantially equivalent to an existing medical device to get it on the market.

Although a registry for knee and hip replacements has not existed in the United States until recently, data on knee and hip implants are tracked in some other countries. According to data in the 2009 annual report of the Australian registry (PDF), the Wright Profemur Z hip was identified as having a higher than anticipated revision rate, with a cumulative percent revision of 11.2% at three years.

A number of other Wright Profemur hip replacement lawsuits have been filed on behalf of individuals who have experienced problems. Some complaints involve situations where the femoral neck of the Wright Profemur implant broke or fractured during normal use, resulting in severe pain and the need for revision surgery to replace the Wright Profemur hip system.

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4 Comments

  • MarilynJune 6, 2022 at 7:21 am

    Tengo cadera de profemur Z y me a causado mucho dolor me opere en el año 2010 se suponía que me anunciarán q mi protesis tenía revisión y nunca fui anunciada lo cual Ahora tengo inflamación metales regados de la protesis tendrán q abrir el fémur cono emparedado limpiar hueso y colocar otra protesis operación pautada par 28 de 2022

  • davidFebruary 2, 2015 at 9:30 pm

    I had to have a revision on my right hip because the pro femur-z cup shifted 180 degrees from where it was supposed to be. They had to do a bone graft from a cadaver to fill the hole in my pelvis bone. The doctor put a cup in with five screws on top of that. I have not had any problem since the recovery time after the surgery.

  • Jerry A.September 16, 2011 at 7:00 pm

    My conserv plus failed 2 months after the implant resulting in a full revision. It still isn't right.

  • jaceJune 26, 2011 at 10:51 pm

    I have a wright implant, left side, resurfacing and the cup has come loose from the pelvic bone. 3 years after my surgery. Provides me constant pain. I have to schedule a revision for the end of July or early August.

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