DePuy Pinnacle Hip Litigation Highlights Dangers of Hip Replacement Risks

It is interesting to note that, in August of 2010, DePuy Orthopedics, a Johnson & Johnson subsidiary, issued a recall of its ASR XL Hip Implant but its Pinnacle Hip Implant – a similarly designed product – in the DePuy Orthopedics line did not suffer such mandate from its developer. Growing complaints on the implant’s alleged risks are focused on its reliability as a defective metal on metal design. The device is said to have the propensity for loosening its components, hip dislocation, implant failure, and metal poisoning of the blood.

Though a recall of DePuy Pinnacle Hip Implant has yet to done, there are data that speak of high failure rates and recipients suffering metallosis and some other serious side effects, including symptoms resulting to scores of lawsuits against DePuy and its Pinnacle Hip Replacement Product. Pinnacle Hip Replacement litigations have, in fact, prompted speculation that Federal lawsuits on DePuy Pinnacle Hip Implant may find consolidation as nationwide multidistrict litigation, or MDL. While such a consolidation has yet to take effect, it is not yet too late to determine whether or not a patient has the grounds to file a case against DePuy Orthopedics involving injuries resulting from DePuy Pinnacle Hip Implant.

Anyone who feels injured by Hip Implant dislocation, who may have suffered a Hip Implant failure, tested positive for metal poisoning of the blood stream, or who has been injured by any other kind of Hip Implant dangers, needs to contact an expert product liability lawyer. The patient must consider that the troubling fact about metal on metal hip replacement devices is that the design can result to the metal components to rub against each other, leading to microscopic metal particles being deposited getting into the bloodstream. Thus resulting in surrounding soft tissue damage, inflammation, and – worse – bone loss. The damage occurring in the surrounding area is caused by premature loosening of the implant, and consequently the failure of the implant itself.

Recipients of DePuy Pinnacle Hip Implant who experience its failure mostly have to undergo painful corrective surgeries to remedy the failure. Most of the time, such surgical revisions are more complicated, more difficult, and more painful compared to the original implantation surgery. Furthermore, the implant failures are mostly linked to damage of surrounding tissue and bone, thus, making rehabilitation harder to perform.

Most commonly, complaints against the DePuy Pinnacle system are focused on the device’s premature loosening. However, other occurrence of more serious problems is not to be counted out. Some patients specifically experienced bacterial infection (particularly occurring in aged and obese patients) and blood clot formation – a condition that may lead to the cardiovascular system’s damage. Most alarming of these risks is the danger of blood metal poisoning (aka metallosis). It is a condition characterized by shards of metal from the implant depositing into the recipient’s bloodstream.

One may suspect injury with the following common signs and symptoms of metallosis include, but are not limited to:

Soft tissue damager
Inflammation, bone lossr
Heightened chromium and cobalt blood levelsr
Genotoxicity
Aseptic fibrosisrn local necrosisr
Pain
Tumors
And walking difficulty

Records of DePuy Pinnacle hip replacement injuries are now coming out as DePuy Pinnacle Hip litigations are piling up.