Howmedica Osteonics Corp. faces a couple’s new Stryker hip implant lawsuit, joining growing multidistrict litigation (MDL) against the company.

Plaintiffs John and Pam S. filed the Stryker hip implant lawsuit in Massachusetts federal court. The lawsuit was filed on July 11, 2018.

According to the Stryker hip implant lawsuit, John and his spouse Pam are residents and citizens of the state of Florida. John says that he was implanted with an LFIT Anatomic CoCr V40 Femoral Head on his right hip on or about March 17, 2015 at Sentara Careplex Hospital. During the surgery, he was also implanted with an Accolade II femoral stem, the Stryker hip implant lawsuit states.

John says that due to severe issues he suffered, the femoral head was explanted on Jan. 12, 2018 at Ocala Regional Medical Center West Marion Community Hospital. That day, he was then implanted with another LFIT Anatomic CoCr Femoral Head.

According to the Stryker hip implant lawsuit, John says that he could not have known that the hip implant device was defective. It was only after his blood was drawn that he learned of the excessive levels of chromium and cobalt ions, attributable to a defective LFIT and Accolade II femoral stem, the Stryker hip implant lawsuit states.

The Stryker hip implant lawsuit was filed on multiple counts, including negligence, negligence per se, defective design, manufacturing defect, failure to warn, breach of express warranty, breach of warranty as to merchantability, breach of implied warranties, violation of the Massachusetts Consumer Protection Act, violation of Consumer Fraud and/or Unfair and Deceptive Trade Practices, negligent misrepresentation, loss of consortium, unjust enrichment, and punitive damages.

Overview: Stryker Hip Implant Lawsuit

John’s claim was filed as part of a large MDL centered on allegations that the Anatomic CoCr V40 Femoral Head and Accolade II femoral stem causes severe adverse effects and complications. Some of the alleged injuries include toxicity, corrosion, and fretting. The Stryker hip implant lawsuit alleges the injuries are caused by the device’s metal-on-metal parts.  Other side effects have also ranged from pain and inflammation to dislocation of the hip device.

Howmedica Osteonics is operated as a subsidiary to Stryker Orthopedics; a world-leading medical technology company that provides innovative services and products in surgical equipment, orthopaedics, and neurotechnology and spine. The company was founded in 1970.

On Aug. 29, 2016, an “Urgent Medical Device Recall Notification” was released by the company. The voluntary recall was issued due to reports of the LFIT V40 device causing severe injuries such as excessive wear debris, lack of range of motion, loss of bone fixation, and dissociation of the femoral head from the stem.

In patients who were implanted with the device, excess cobalt and chromium ions were also found in their bloodstream. This may happen when the two metal parts (LFIT V40 femoral head and TMZF femoral) rub together thus releasing the ions into the bloodstream and surrounding tissues.

The Stryker Hip Implant Lawsuit is Case No. 1:18-cv-11444-IT, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts. The Stryker V40 MDL is in re: Stryker LFIT V40 Femoral Head Products Liability Litigation, MDL No. 17-md-2768-IT, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts.