Plaintiff Diane A. filed a Pinnacle hip replacement lawsuit in Texas federal court on March 28, 2018. Johnson & Johnson faces the Pinnacle hip replacement lawsuit charges, as does the company’s subsidiary DePuy Orthopaedics, Inc.

Diane, in filing the Pinnacle hip replacement lawsuit, joins a growing multidistrict litigation (MDL) against the companies. Like many others, she filed her Pinnacle hip replacement lawsuit due to severe adverse side effects she allegedly suffered from implantation of the Pinnacle Acetabular Cup System.

Pinnacle Hip Implantation

Diane says that she became implanted with a Pinnacle device when she underwent a total left hip arthroplasty performed at Orlando Regional Hospital in Orlando, Fla.

However, soon after implantation she claims she suffered from severe adverse side effects and complications. Some of these side effects allegedly included corrosion and friction wear. According to the lawsuit, this is believed to be from increased amounts of “toxic cobalt-chromium metal debris” released into the surrounding tissue.

She later underwent a total hip revision surgery, on Dec. 28, 2016, because of the adverse side effects she suffered.

Overview: Pinnacle Hip Replacement

A multitude of complaints have surrounded the Pinnacle Acetabular Cup System, a metal-on-metal (MoM) device designed and manufactured by DePuy Orthopaedics, a division of Johnson & Johnson.

The device was released in 2001, but since then it has been linked to a multitude of serious and severe adverse side effects. Some of the side effects linked to the device have included:

• Hip pain
• Loosening of the Pinnacle Hip Device
• Trouble standing or walking
• Difficulty weight bearing
• Hip revision surgery
• Metal poisoning, also known as metallosis

Although approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and manufactured to increase a patient’s range of motion and mobility, the metal hip has since received almost 1,300 adverse event reports.

The complications and side effects are said to stem from the rubbing of the metal acetabular liner and MoM device. Once implanted and as they make contact, they may release metal ions such as chromium and cobalt into the patient’s soft tissues and bloodstream.

One reason for the extraordinary number of adverse event reports received by the FDA is said to be because of how the device was released to the market. The device was approved through the agency’s premarket approval process known as the 510(k) process. However, this process requires fewer clinical studies affirming the product’s safety and efficacy. Requirements only include sufficient evidence that the device is “substantially equivalent” to a “grandfathered” device for approval to be granted.

Allegations Against Pinnacle Manufacturers

The Pinnacle hip replacement lawsuit was filed on multiple counts including negligence, failure to warn, manufacturing defect, design defect, negligent misrepresentation, breach of express warranty, and breach of implied warranty.

Diane demands a trial by jury, and hopes to recover for some of the following damages: pain and suffering; lost wages; loss of earnings and earning capacity; loss of enjoyment of life; mental anguish and distress; and disfigurement.

The Pinnacle Hip Replacement Lawsuit is Case No. 3:18-cv-00767-K, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division.