A couple from Texas has filed a DePuy hip replacement symptoms lawsuit against DePuy Orthopaedics in a growing multidistrict litigation (MDL) against the company.

The Pinnacle hip implant MDL centers around allegations that the company concealed the defect of the hip replacement and misrepresented the medical device as safe and effective.

Plaintiffs Verlin B. and Judith B. filed their DePuy hip replacement symptoms lawsuit on Feb. 7, 2018 in federal court in Texas.

Verlin says that he underwent a left total hip arthroplasty procedure on Sept. 16, 2010, where he was implanted with a Pinnacle device with a metal liner.

However, he began to experience pain and cramping in his hip and down his leg, along with a loss of balance and difficulty walking after receiving the implant. He says that his blood test showed elevated levels of metal in his bloodstream. These complications required revision surgery on Nov. 1, 2017 to remove the Pinnacle device.

Verlin states that had DePuy “not concealed the known defects, the early failure rate, the known complications and the unreasonable risks associated with the use of the Pinnacle Device, … [he] would not have consented to the Pinnacle Device being used in his total hip arthroplasty.”

The DePuy hip replacement symptoms lawsuit alleges multiple counts including negligence, failure to warn, manufacturing defect, design defect, negligent misrepresentation, breach of express warranty, breach of implied warranty against the implant manufacturer.

DePuy Hip Replacement Symptoms Overview

DePuy Orthopaedics, a division of Johnson & Johnson, has received numerous complaints regarding the Pinnacle Acetabular Cup System, a metal-on-metal (MoM) device. The device was released in 2001 and was designed to increase a patient’s range of motion and mobility as a total hip arthroplasty system.

However, the allegedly defective MoM device causes serious injuries including pain, bone loss, and the release of toxic levels of metal particles into the bloodstream. Another adverse effect is the deposit and build-up of metal debris in the body’s soft tissues, known as metallosis.

The following have been reported among other potential DePuy Pinnacle hip replacement issues:

• Difficulty weight bearing
• Trouble standing or walking
• Hip pain
• The loosening of the Pinnacle Hip Device
• Requirement for revision hip replacement surgery
• Metallosis (metal poisoning)

These adverse effects are said to happen when the MoM device is used in combination with a metal acetabular liner called Ultamet. If these two components are implanted, they can rub together and make contact, causing the release of cobalt and chromium ions into the patient’s bloodstream and soft tissues.

Although there has not been a DePuy Pinnacle recall yet, patients implanted with the device have complained of numerous issues. In fact, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have received nearly 1,300 adverse event reports of patients experiencing complications and injuries, and those experiencing these adverse effects may have legal recourse in the filing of a DePuy hip replacement symptoms lawsuit.

The DePuy Hip Replacement Symptoms Lawsuit is Case No. 3:18-cv-00299-K, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division.