A Colorado man who received a defective Biomet M2a Magnum hip implant has filed a hip replacement lawsuit against the device manufacturer, after suffering from metal poisoning after a hip replacement surgery and undergoing a risky, painful revision surgery.

Plaintiff Robert C. received the metal on metal hip replacement in February 2007 during a right total hip arthroplasty procedure. Robert claims the the metal on metal hip replacement caused serious side effects, including bone and tissue destruction and toxic levels of cobalt and chromium in his body, known as metal poisoning or metallosis.

Just five months after the hip implant surgery, Robert was forced to undergo painful and risky revision surgery to remove the defective Biomet hip implant.

Revision surgeries are generally more complex than the original hip replacement surgery, often because there is a reduced amount of bone in which to place the new hip implants.  Revision surgeries also usually take longer and have a higher rate of complications, according to the hip replacement lawsuit.

Robert is filing this hip replacement lawsuit to seek damages for Biomet’s alleged disregard in marketing and promoting a defective device and concealing serious potential complications from patients and the medical community.

His Biomet Hip Replacement Lawsuit is Case No. 3:16-cv-00070-RLM-CAN in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, South Bend Division.

Biomet Metal on Metal Hip Replacement System Problems

The Biomet Magnum hip implant was approved by the FDA without adequate safety testing, through the agency’s controversial “expedited” 501(k) process, which allows devices to go to market if it’s deemed similar enough to a previously approved device. Many hip replacement devices have been approved in this manner and later recalled, after users experienced side effects and complications.

Since approving the Biomet M2a Magnum implant, the FDA has received nearly 17,000 adverse event reports concerning metal on metal hip replacement devices.

Biomet and other metal on metal hip replacement manufacturers have been ordered to conduct post-market surveillance studies after increasing concern about the dangers of metal hip replacement implants, such as metallosis and hip replacement failure.

Some experts and health regulatory agencies have even recommended that the class of devices should not be used at all.

Problems with the Biomet M2a Magnum and other metal on metal hip replacement devices include:

• Hip pain
• Difficulty walking or standing
• Inflammation of and soft tissue damage to the area surrounding the implant
• Loosening of the device with need for repair or replacement
• Infection
• Tumors
• Cancer

Doctors typically expect hip implants to last about 10 years once they are implanted, but many are finding the metal on metal hip replacement devices need replacing far sooner.

Metal Poisoning from Hip Replacement

One of the most commonly reported serious side effects regarding metal on metal hip replacement devices is metallosis.  Metallosis is a type of metal poisoning that can occur when metal on metal hip replacements shed metal ions into the nearby soft tissues.

Symptoms of metal poisoning from hip replacement often include pain in the replaced joint. If the tissue or bone becomes necrotic (dies), there can be a dislocation or fracture. Sometimes pockets of fluid, called pseudotumors, develop in the area. There may be a clunking noise in the hip.

Metal poisoning from hip replacement can enter the bloodstream and affect the nervous system, skin and other organs, causing skin rashes, visual impairment, hearing impairment, confusion, thyroid issues, and heart problems.

It has not been proven that metallosis causes cancer; however, the World Health Organization (WHO) International Agency for Research on Cancer lists trivalent chromium and cobalt (the metals typically used in metal on metal hip replacement implants) as potential carcinogens.

Metallosis symptoms evolve over several months, usually nine or more months after surgery but less than four years.

Filing a Biomet Hip Replacement Lawsuit

If you received a Biomet Magnum hip implant during hip replacement surgery and experienced metal poisoning or other complications, consider joining the thousands of other victims of the defective metal on metal hip replacement implants in filing a lawsuit. You may be entitled to compensation for lost wages, medical expenses, and more.