I am one of the people who has a recalled DePuy ASR hip implant. Indeed, both of my hips have this system and both now need to be replaced. What are my rights? What is my case worth?
A total hip replacement replaces the body’s natural joint with an artificial one, usually made out of metal and plastic. A typical total hip replacement system consists of four separate components: (1) a femoral stem (2) a femoral head, (3) a liner, and (4) an acetabular shell. The surgeon hollows out a patient’s femur bone and the femoral stem is implanted. The femoral head is a metal ball that is fixed on top of the femoral stem. The femoral head forms the hip joint when it is placed inside the polyethylene liner and acetabular shell.
The DePuy ASR is a type of artificial hip replacement system. The first components of the system was approved for use by the FDA in late 2003. Other components or related systems were approved for use in later years.
On March 8, 2010, Pamela L. Plouhar, Vice President of Worldwide Clinical Affairs for DePuy, issued an “URGENT FIELD SAFETY NOTICE” to surgeons concerning a high amount of revisions of people who received the ASR prosthesis. On or about July 17, 2010, a Class 2 recall of many of the ASR components was posted on the FDA’s website and both the DePuy ASR XL Acetabular and DePuy ASR Hip Resurfacing Systems were recalled. It appears that there are some 27,000 people in the United States who have replacement hips that are the subject of the recall. The company has said that only the DePuy ASR XL Acetabular system was used in the United States.
The symptoms of the problem include pain, swelling and problems walking. Continuing symptoms may indicate that the implant is not staying attached to the bone in the correct position, has been fractured, or has been dislocated. Another problem is the release of metal particles into the joint and in the muscles around the joint. In some patients this can result in pain and swelling and could cause damage to the muscles, bones and nerves around the hip. Tests are necessary to determine if the hip is working properly and if there is a reaction to the metal particles.
The value of your case is dependent on many factors. The claim against DePuy is a type of personal injury claim known as a products liability claim and Tennessee law permits the recovery of damages as described in more detail here. As you can see from reviewing the information described in the link, determining the value of a case is a very complicated issue and experienced lawyers must gather lots of information before reaching the value of a case.
Our firm has filed two DePuy ASR hip replacement cases and is evaluating several others at this time. For more information contact me 866-812-8787 (a toll-free number) or 615-742-4880. You may also reach me by email at jday@johndaylegal.com.