Tuesday, March 22, 2011

Depuy Hip Recall

I was on the Len Tillem show on KGO Radio 810 in San Francisco yesterday talking about the Depuy ASR Hip Recall.  This is a hip replacement product that has been recalled by the manufacturers, Depuy Orthopedics and Johnson & Johnson.  It seems clear that it should have been recalled much earlier because of information of problems given to Depuy.  While there was a delay in acknowledging the problems, tens of thousands of patients received defective hip prostheses.   The failure rate is way too high- officially 12-13%, but in reality perhaps as high as 30%.  While it is in a patient's body this prosthesis can loosen and become displaced causing severe pain and difficulty walking.  Disturbingly, since it is all metal, the components have a tendency to rub against each other, causing microscopic bits of heavy metals to be dispersed into the surrounding tissue and into the bloodstream.  The long-term effects of the presence of these metals in the body is not well-understood, but is definitely worrisome.

If you or a loved one has one of these hip replacement products, call me or another competent lawyer.  Do not sign anything given to you by Depuy/Johnson & Johnson or you may be giving up valuable rights.