A man who says he developed a herniated disk after using a walking boot for an injured leg has filed a class action lawsuit against the device maker DJO Global Inc.
Lead plaintiff Daniel Dreifort alleges in his class action lawsuit that the thick-soled walking boot, the Aircast boot, can lead to misalignments in patients, and even lengthen the leg of the wearers.
The plaintiff says that DJO is aware of the problem and offers an insert called “Evenup” to help mitigate the problems, but he was not informed of Evenup when he started using the boot.
“The thick sole is approximately 1-2 inches thick resulting in one leg being longer than the other, aka leg length discrepancy,” contends the walking boot class action lawsuit. “Walking in the boot causes knee, hip, and back pain. In at least one case, the boot has caused permanent injury resulting in a hip replacement operation”
Dreifort says that he was prescribed the DJO walking boot to help him recover from an ankle injury; however, he developed a herniated disk in his back instead.
The DJO walking boot class action lawsuit alleges that the sole of the boot promotes an uneven gait, leading to his herniated disk and other problems for other patients.
“It does not minimize hip differential, it causes hip differential,” explains the DJO walking boot class action lawsuit. “It’s not smart healing with every step.”
The walking boot is sold both through medical offices and directly to consumers, according to the class action lawsuit. DJO touts the device as “Smart Healing with Every Step.”
According to the DJO walking boot class action lawsuit, the medical device company was aware of the complications caused by the boot but failed to warn Dreifort and other consumers.
The plaintiff points out that the Evenup device meant to correct the differential that led to his alleged injury was not provided to him when he purchased his DJO walking boot.
“DJO should warn consumers of the danger, sell its thick sole walking boot together with the Evenup as a complete package, reimburse defrauded customers (cost to repair), and create a conspicuous webpage to process past personal injury claims in good faith,” alleges the walking boot class action lawsuit.
The class action lawsuit alleges that DJO may have a darker incentive not to inform patients of the potential for injury from the walking boot – to increase the need for knee and hip implants also produced by the company.
“DJO had knowledge of the false and misleading representations when they sought to profit by selling a product solely intended to fix a problem the created and they failed to disclose. DJO profits when consumers suffer from knee, hip, and back injuries, because they are able to sell their other products such as surgical implants at an alarming rate,” alleges the DJO walking boot class action lawsuit.
The plaintiff seeks to represent consumers who purchased a DJO, broken up by subclasses depending on when the device was purchased.
Dreifort and the proposed Class are represented by Scott Sanborn of The Law Office of Scott Sanborn.
The DJO Walking Boot Class Action Lawsuit is Dreifort v. DJO Global Inc., et al., Case No. 3:18-cv02393, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California.
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37 thoughts onAircast Walking Boot Causes Further Injuries, Class Action Says
Hi have also been struggling with a herniated disk and pinch nerve for the past 3 years. I wore this boot for 9weeks after I was told a fractured my toe. I have been to chiropractor, physical theraphy and on my second spinal epidural shot trying to avoid surgery. I would like to be included as well.
I as well suffer from a herniated disk secondary to wearing the CAM boot for a fracture to my distal fibula. Almost two years later and I continue to suffer with permanent damage to the point that my leg is weakened and I walk with a drag. I also have continuous numbness and tingling of the leg that was not broken, with severe back pain on days I do anything strenuous. I was a Registered Nurse working in a very fast paced labor and delivery unit prior to my injury in which now I am not physically able to have a job so physically demanding, which has forced me to a career change. Mind you, prior to this injury, I had never once sustained any back injury or was treated for any underlying back issues whatsoever. Please Help!!!
Happened to me this past summer, still trying to recover from herniated disc without having surgery, life changing for sure
My ankle was injured in an accident them subsequently infected so required surgery including debridement and skin grafting. I was instructed to immobilize the ankle keeping it at a 90° angle to avoid ripping apart the stitches and grafted tissue. No one instructed me to only wear it temporarily so I wore it non-stop for a week when I suddenly developed excruciating hip and lower back pain of the same leg. I was worried I’d dislocated my hip replacement. I took Uber to an Emergency room and remained hospitalized 3 days.
During discharge, I put on the boot to get home and the pain immediately appeared only worse.
I have been bed-ridden 4 days now. Ankle is healed but I cannot move or bend now from hip and back pain.
happened to me
I broke my right ankle in August of this year and was put in the air boot. I wore it for 4 weeks and now I have a problem with my ligament, tendons giving me lots of pain in the arch, heel of my foot and in my ankle. I have a swollen bump on the outside of my right ankle that will not go away. I am seeing PT for the pain in my tendon that causes me problems with walking. I was diagnosed with posterior tibial tendon dysfunction. I would like to be part of this lawsuit.
Wore one on and off for 8 years! Still have back pain and herniated disks!
I now have hip pain
I developed a cyst on my akiles tendon after using the darn boot for 3 months and my hip has had problems since then. Still have problems with my hip , my doctor tells my to stay off my feet as much as possible to help the cyst because if it gets worse the down time for having that removed is about 6 months.
I broke my ankle 3yrs ago and all the Dr gave me was the boot to wear the ankle is still swollen and i can’t walk on it and walk with a limp l would like to be included in this lawsuit
This happened to me, extreme pain of the foot, hip, etc.