The New York Times recently reported that DePuy Orthopaedics, a unit of Johnson & Johnson, has warned doctors that an artificial hip implant known as the ASR has a high early failure rate in some patients. The warning comes after more than two years of reports of implant failures in patients after only a few years post-surgery. Typically, artificial hips are projected to last 15 years. As a result of these failures, patients required costly and painful replacement surgeries.
ASR FAILING AT A MUCH HIGHER RATE THAN COMPARABLE DEVICES
Orthopedic experts urged DePuy to stop sales of the ASR earlier. Some believed that the implant had a defect making implantation difficult. Dr. Stephen Graves, the director of an implant database in Australia, has said that data showed some time ago that the ASR was failing early at a much higher rate than comparable devices. In December 2009, DePuy voluntarily withdrew the ASR from the Australian market. DePuy also announced in late 2009 that it would phase out sales across the world by the end of 2010.
The ASR is part of a category of devices known as metal-on-metal implants. These types of devices have been increasingly under evaluation because they create an unsafe amount of metallic debris over time. This debris can lead to severe inflammatory responses, damaging patient muscles and other soft tissues, and requiring patients to have further surgery to replace the device soon after surgery. Since early 2008, the FDA has received over 300 complaints regarding the ASR from patients.
PINTAS & MULLINS LAW FIRM: A NATIONWIDE LEADER IN DEFECTIVE MEDICAL DEVICE CASES
If you or a loved one has been injured after receiving an ASR hip implant, you have legal rights. Our defective medical device lawyers can analyze your case, recommend you the best legal venues to explore, walk you through the process, and explain what you can expect from a lawsuit. You might be entitled to significant compensation, and we could help, given the fact that we have decades of experience with these types of cases. For this reason, you should turn to the nationwide personal injury attorneys at Pintas & Mullins Law Firm. We offer free case reviews, so do not hesitate to contact us today.
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