AVA Law Group is currently investigating cases on behalf of individuals who received a metal hip implant and were injured by hip implant side effects and complications. Medical manufacturers Smith & Nephew recalled several models of their metal hip replacement systems after reports of individuals developing severe injuries from defective hip implants. Hip replacement patients reported painful complications after their surgeries, many of which required another invasive hip replacement surgery to remove and replace the defective hip implant. Even worse, injury reports noted individuals developed severe side effects from metal in their hip implants rubbing off and infecting their bloodstreams, leading to metal poisoning, bone loss, and hip failure.
If you underwent hip replacement surgery, received a metal hip implant, and experienced severe side effects, contact AVA Law Group’s injury lawyers today. Smith & Nephew’s hip implant recall may entitle you to a cash award to help you recover from your injuries. Find out if you qualify for compensation by singing up for your no-cost, no-obligation case evaluation today.
Design defects in models of Smith & Nephew’s metal-on-metal hip devices produced severe complications for both hip resurfacing and hip replacement patients, instigating a massive hip replacement recall. While metal-on-metal hip replacement systems were originally created to provide support and reduce natural wear-and-tear, current research and reports show Smith & Nephew’s metal-on-metal hip implants create more risks than benefits when compared to other types of hip replacement systems.
Hip replacement patients across the United States are now discovering their severe hip injuries and health complications come from dangerously defective Smith & Nephew hip implant systems. Many of these complications, such as hip implant failure, require the need for invasive and expensive revision surgeries to correct the faulty device. To recover losses caused by hip replacement revision surgeries and pain & suffering, many individuals with faulty Smith & Nephew hip replacements are filing lawsuits against the infamous manufacturer for compensation to help them towards recovery.
Smith & Nephew has recalled the following metal-on-metal hip implant systems from the market due to extreme side effects and complications:
The Smith & Nephew Birmingham Hip Resurfacing (BHR) hip implant system (approved in 2006) is commonly used by surgeons who want to preserve the patient’s femoral head. However, the BHR system has been found to create severe problems in patients who do not meet a very limited list of hip replacement qualifications.
In 2015 Smith & Nephew issued a hip replacement recall for the BHR system, issuing a safety notice stating that patients over 65 and patients that required an implant head 48 mm or smaller were at an increased risk of needing revision surgery. They also said the BHR hip implants put individuals at a high risk of fractures, dislocation, and an assortment of other complications that could lead to revision surgery.
Shortly after this hip replacement recall, officials released another safety warning advising surgeons to not implant the BHR in female patients and to not use BHR femoral head components less than 46 mm in size. According to sources, the BHR has a 26% failure rate in women after ten years, creating severe, painful complications.
In 2012 Smith & Nephew instigated a worldwide recall for the R3 Acetabular System, a metal liner used in nearly 4,000 American patients in 2009. The R3 Acetabular System, a modular hip implant system, is composed of several individual components for surgeons to select from based on what the patient needs: a femoral stem, femoral head, liner, and acetabular cup.
Reports showed that patients experienced a number of complications including pain, loosening, device failure, infection, metal sensitivity, and dislocation. While the implant was highly marketed as a sturdy, long-lasting product, the numerous complaints instigated the recall 3 short years after its release in the United States.
Smith & Nephew released the Modular SMF Hip System in 2008 and was followed by the Modular Redapt Femoral System in 2012. However, they were both recalled at the same time in a Class II recall in November of 2016.
The FDA reported that the Modular hip replacement recall was instigated due to a “a higher than anticipated complaint and adverse event trend.” Complaints linked to the Modular SMF and Modular Redapt systems were similar to the complainst with the R3 and BHR systems. Researchers found inidviduals with the Modular Redapt Femoral system and the Modular SMF system had high levels of metal particles in their bloodstream, which can lead to metal poisoning.
Recent studies reveal that the friction between the metal hip implant parts can wear and flake. This constant rubbing and grinding of metal on metal releases dangerously toxic metal ions into the bloodstream and throughout the body. These metal particles can create incredibly painful complications, the most common being metallosis, a type of metal poisoning.
Symptoms of metallosis including the following:
Lawsuits for models of the UK company’s metal-on-metal hip implants steadily resurface as more complications arise in hip replacement patients. As of 2019, about 6,000 hip implants have been recalled by Smith & Nephew for causing painful, dangerous complications.
Patients filing product liability lawsuits against Smith & Nephew accuse the company of failing to warn about the possibility of product failures and revision surgeries. Further, injured individuals claim the company failed to thoroughly research the design, which could have saved thousands of patients from injury.
Currently over 500 lawsuits over Smith & Nephew’s BHR hip implants are pending in a multidistrict litigation (MDL) centralized in a Maryland federal court. Each of these lawsuits raise similar claims that the BHR hip replacement system caused patients to experience severe, painful complications that often resulted in the need for an invasive revision surgery. Experts closely following this litigation anticipate that hundreds of lawsuits may be added into this litigation as patients discover their injuries and complications were caused by their hip implant system.
Thousands of people continue to be injured as a result of not knowing their hip implant is the root cause of their injuries. If you received a metal-on-mental hip implant and experienced severe complications and side effects, contact AVA Law Group, Inc. today. Our representatives will walk you through a series of guided questions to assess whether or not you qualify for legal compensation and will stand by you through every step of the process. No confusion, no hassle—we are here to serve you! Sign up for your free case evaluation now or call 1.866.428.2925 to talk to speak to one of our professionals right now.
