DePuy Metal Hip Replacement Lawsuit Pursued in U.K. Over ASR Recall
A DePuy ASR class action lawsuit is being pursued in the United Kingdom, alleging that the recalled metal hip implants can flood a patient’s body with toxic metal debris, which could lead to tumors and cancer.
In August, DePuy Orthopaedics Inc., a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, recalled the ASR metal-on-metal hip replacement system, acknowledging that about one out of every eight patients who receives the hip implant may experience problems within five years. At the time of the recall, about 93,000 DePuy ASR hip implants had been sold.
The recall affects more than 10,000 U.K. residents, who must have their implants reviewed by doctors to see if they are potentially defective. According to a report by The Daily Mail, a complaint will be brought on behalf of at least 78 patients who received a defective DePuy ASR hip implant in the U.K., many of whom have had to undergo revision surgery.
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Learn MoreThe DePuy metal hip replacement lawsuit will call for £3.5 million ($5.5 million) in compensation, however some estimates say that price tag could grow as high as £350 million ($550 million) as more recipients of the implants in the U.K. join the lawsuit.
According to allegations raised, design problems with the DePuy metal-on-metal hip replacement system allow the release of chromium and cobalt into the blood, which can be toxic.
Blood tests on some patients with the ASR hip implants have revealed that levels of chromium and cobalt can be 100 times higher than normal, and in some cases the patients have had tissue inflammation and benign tumors develop. Both chromium and cobalt have been linked to cancer in certain conditions, although cobalt is also used to fight cancer under certain applications.
In addition to the claim in the U.K., there have been a number of individual and class action DePuy metal hip replacement lawsuits in the United States as well. On September 30, a DePuy class action lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Ohio claiming that the company is misleading people into thinking they will be reimbursed for defective DePuy hip implants in order to try and get them to sign waivers that would give the company both the implant and access to their medical records.
Another DePuy ASR recall class action claim was filed on September 24 by Katheryn Bendel, seeking to force the company to pay for a uniform program to compensate for medical monitoring for all hip replacement patients who received one of the defective metal implants, regardless of their financial or health care situations.
In addition to the class actions, a growing number of DePuy ASR injury lawsuits have been filed by individuals throughout the United States who have experienced problems with a DePuy ASR implant, many of which have required revision surgery to replace the artificial hip.
All of the lawsuits over DePuy ASR hip implants involve similar allegations of design defect, which caused the plaintiffs to incur additional medical expenses, suffer pain and, in some cases, require additional surgery to revise or replace the hip implant. The complaints allege that DePuy failed to adequately test the metal-on-metal hip system and failed to immediately issue a recall when it became apparent that that the DePuy ASR was linked to a high failure rate.
In September, a motion was filed with the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation to consolidate and centralize the DePuy ASR recall litigation. The Panel is scheduled to hear arguments on the motion next month.
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RichardApril 15, 2011 at 3:24 pm
In the UK, Pryers Solicitors are acting for more than 100 people who have suffered the failure of their ASR hip. http://www.pryers-solicitors.co.uk/blog/news/concerns-about-metal-on-metal-hip-components/
annieJanuary 24, 2011 at 11:08 pm
just an add on to my earlier post, all i will say is that you should really not have to put monies up front if asked to get independant advice first, citizens advice etc. And to the posters who have had a replacement for the second time due to problems then yes, go and get all of the records from the first surgery now!! you may well have a case, and it is possible that the toxins have been release[Show More]just an add on to my earlier post, all i will say is that you should really not have to put monies up front if asked to get independant advice first, citizens advice etc. And to the posters who have had a replacement for the second time due to problems then yes, go and get all of the records from the first surgery now!! you may well have a case, and it is possible that the toxins have been released into your body. read up on metallosis
annieJanuary 24, 2011 at 10:59 pm
hello everbody, i had a hip replacement in 2006 suffered constant pain/swelling etc etc, consultant said mri and x rays showed no problems? i continued to attend pain clinics constantly complained to consultant. Amazingly when this problem was made public, the hospital had to admit it was depuy system. my husband has been brill, got all my records, done loads of research. bloods came back massive [Show More]hello everbody, i had a hip replacement in 2006 suffered constant pain/swelling etc etc, consultant said mri and x rays showed no problems? i continued to attend pain clinics constantly complained to consultant. Amazingly when this problem was made public, the hospital had to admit it was depuy system. my husband has been brill, got all my records, done loads of research. bloods came back massive toxin levels, they will now replace that hip next month. DO NOT under any circumstances be fobbed off, insist on (a) name of manufacturer(b) blood tests if then applicable(c)if a replacement is planned put it in WRITING that the device removed from your body is given to YOU. the company are trying to get them back for " testing and research" My horror story gets worse it now turns out that the second hip i had in 2009 is also depuy, but sold under the name of PINNACLE device, again this needs full investigation DO NOT be fobbed off with "oh that is not faulty" Get a good medical negligence law firm to act for you, you can go no win no fee, all you need is to be the receipiant of a depuy replacement device, hip, knee any of them.
robertJanuary 14, 2011 at 4:55 am
I have had both hips resurfaced then the left revised with the asr system but it has only lasted 2 years and the bone around the joint is deteriorating. Who do i contact about the class action in the UK
JulieNovember 10, 2010 at 9:53 pm
I had a metal on metal hip resurfacing in 2005, I experienced many problems and was tested for high metal ions in the blood. The consultant believed that my ion levels were not elevated because I could not use my hip properly. I have since had to have a total hip replacement. I just wonder if I should still be concerned by the affects of the metal on metal hip I had replaced?
StephenNovember 1, 2010 at 6:23 pm
Last year i had double hip replacemnt procedures,last year.I have been experiencing pain & discomfort for sometime.Met my consultant today who has confirmed that both replacements were Johnson & Johnson Mfg. So looking for information on what happens next
SusanOctober 28, 2010 at 1:01 pm
I had a total hip replacement in April 2010 I had pain and several dislocations so had to have another revisionsl total hip replacement do I need to worry how do I find out what make the hip was and is to see if I am one of the unfortunate people who recieved faulty unsafe hips.