Hip Revision Surgery Patient Sues J&J, DePuy for Faulty Implant

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Husband and wife Gerald T. Mullan and Anne L. Mullan have filed a product liability lawsuit against DePuy Orthopaedics, Johnson & Johnson and other related entities over alleged complications Mr. Mullan endured from one of the companies’ metal-on-metal artificial hip implants.

Gerald Mullan had both his left and right hip joint replaced by the Pinnacle metal-on-metal hip implant. Mullan first had his right hip joint replaced in March of 2006, and his left replaced in June of 2007. However, according to his lawsuit, Mullan began to experience debilitating pain and other complications.

In June of 2012, it was found that Mullan had elevated levels of potentially-toxic metal ions in his blood, including chromium and cobalt. This, along with the pain caused Mullan and his physicians to decided to perform “hip revision surgery,” a surgical procedure to remove the hip implant and replace it.

According to the DePuy hip lawsuit, orthopedic surgeons removed in October 2012 the right hip implant, followed by its port counterpart in January 2013. The text of the lawsuit points out that hip revision surgery presents certain challenges not found in regular hip replacement surgeries. For one, surgeons have less bone to work with, from the initial implantation and the extraction of the device. Additionally, patients requiring revision typically have some injuries and weakness to the surrounding musculature around the implant, slowing recovery time. The DePuy hip lawsuit asserts that this damage left Mullan with permanent pain and disability.

The DePuy hip lawsuit contends that the manufacturers failed to adequately test the device prior to putting it onto the market. According to the complaint, the Pinnacle hip implant was able to skip several stages of testing. The manufacturers were able to successfully argue that the device was substantially similar to existing medical technologies, which allowed them to bypass certain steps of testing.

The hip replacement lawsuit further alleges that despite the limited testing, the manufacturers were aware—or reasonably should have known—about the risks of complications associated with the device. To support this assertion, the lawsuit states that since at least 2006, DePuy has had access to data, in the form of peer-reviewed journal articles specific to their hip implant, that indicate a high rate of deformation of the hip implant. Deformation could theoretically cause the kind of pain that Mullan suffered after he received the implant. The lawsuit also cites articles that found high levels of toxic metal ions in the blood of patients with metal-on-metal hip implants, and cites postmarket reports of complications, including pain and the need for hip revision surgery.

Additionally, the hip replacement lawsuit alleges that despite this information, the manufacturers failed to act on it to protect the public from these risks. Despite concerns dating back to 2006, the company has not yet recalled the implant, despite allegedly high failure rates, and growing scrutiny from regulatory agencies.

The DePuy Hip Replacement Lawsuit is formally titled Gerald T. Mullan et al vs. Dupuy Orthopaedics, Incorporated et al, case no. 3:13-cv-04409-K, filed within the MDL In Re: DePuy Orthopaedics Incorporated, Pinnacle Hip Implant Products Liability Litigation, MDL No 2244, filed within the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas.

Help for Hip Revision Patients

If you or a loved received a metal on metal hip implant after January 1, 2009, and went to experience hip replacement complications such as dislocated hip, metal poisoning, cancer, tissue death, pain or other injury, there’s still time to take legal action against the device manufacturer. These companies have already paid out millions of dollars to victims. Don’t delay – see if you qualify to pursue compensation to cover your medical bills, pain and suffering and other damages at the Metal on Metal Hip Replacement Class Action Lawsuit Investigation.