More Lawsuits concerning the DePuy Hip Filed

New Orleans, LAThe end of 2010 does not mean the end of lawsuits concerning the DePuy hip replacement being filed. Another DePuy hip lawsuit has been filed and more are likely as some patients experience failure of their DePuy hip implant device.

The most recent lawsuit was filed in Orleans Parish Civil District Court on behalf of a man who received one of the Depuy Orthopaedics hip devices that was eventually recalled. The lawsuit was filed against Oshsner Clinic Foundation and Mark Starring and Associates and requests that the defendants pay the cost of removing the DePuy hip device. The lawsuit further requests the defendants cover all consequential damages caused by the hip implant.

The plaintiff alleges that the defendants knew or should have known about the defective hip implants, according to The Louisiana Record (12/20/10). The patient reportedly received the DePuy hip implant device in April 2009. In August 2010, the DePuy ASR hip implants were recalled due to a high failure rate.

Although most hip implant devices are expected to last 15 to 20 years, around 12 percent of patients who received the DePuy ASR experienced failure in less than five years. Hip implant failure often requires revision surgery, in which the implant device is replaced. Each revision surgery is more complex than the last and carries a higher risk of complications.

Further complicating matters is that metal shavings—known as debris—can come loose from the DePuy hip device and be absorbed by surrounding tissue. The condition, known as metallosis can cause the surrounding tissue to die, which can also lead to failure of the hip implant.

Meanwhile, a lawsuit filed in California against DePuy Orthopaedics, Inc, alleges failures in the ASR Hip Implant Devices "give rise to symptoms such as pain, inflammation and death to surrounding tissue and bone, a partial or complete lack of mobility and the need for revision surgery." The lawsuit further alleges that the defendant continued to aggressively market the hip implant devices as safe and effective despite receiving notice of hundreds of complaints about the devices.

Finally, the lawsuit alleges that the defendants offered doctors $50 per patient for obtaining the patient's consent to forward the patient's medical records to the defendant.

Lawsuits concerning the DePuy hip device have also been filed in Canada.