We recently reported on Johnson & Johnson’s worldwide recall of DePuy ASR hip replacements. Since the report, a number of articles have mentioned an increasing incidence of lawsuits against the company. The recall began after the National Joint Registry of England and Wales reported that one eighth of all patients with the hip replacement had to suffer repeated surgery to make adjustments to the device within five years of receiving it. A News Inferno article reports that over 93,000 people around the world have received the recalled implants.
Lawsuits have now been filed in federal courts in New Jersey and California, and in a California state court as well. At least one, and likely more, patients have had the recalled hip implants removed, but have not yet received replacements and have been left unable to walk. More lawsuits are expected to arise as the recall proceeds, the article noted.
A PR Web release added that approximately 11,000 people with the recalled implants will require at least one further hip replacement surgery. The release alleges, “DePuy manufactured a defective product, failed to warn patients and doctors of problems with it and negligence in designing, manufacturing and selling the hip replacement systems.” The criticized design defect involves metal on metal abrasion that can result in debris that leads to inflammation and other internal damage.
Another PR Web report said that the FDA received over 400 complaints before Johnson & Johnson initiated the recall. The article noted that, “most major joint replacement surgery centers have also experienced issues with the hip replacement systems.” Lawsuits against the company allege that they had prior knowledge of device dysfunction and failure long before recalling the devices and that they failed to warn consumers of potential dangers, a Lawyers and Settlements article said.
References:
News Inferno Staff. (September 8, 2010) “Johnson & Johnson DePuy ASR Hip Implant Recall Sparks Lawsuits.” Retrieved on September 8, 2010 from the News Inferno website: http://www.newsinferno.com/archives/23794
PR Web Staff. (September 3, 2010) “DePuy ASR Hip Recall News Devastates Tens of Thousands of Older Americans.” Retrieved on September 8, 2010 from the PR Web website: http://www.prweb.com/releases/depuy/hip-recall/prweb4463624.htm
PR Web Staff. (September 8, 2010) “DePuy Hip Recall Provided Somber Labor Day Weekend News for Unfortunate Hip Replacement Patients with the DePuy ASR Replacement Hip.” Retrieved on September 8, 2010 from the PR Web website: http://www.prweb.com/releases/prwebdepuy/hip-recall/prweb4477034.htm
Turner, Heidi. (September 8, 2010) “DePuy Hip Devices Recalled.” Retrieved on September 8, 2010 from the Lawyers and Settlements website: http://www.lawyersandsettlements.com/articles/14932/depuy-orthopaedics-implants-hip-5.html