A Texas man has filed a DePuy Pinnacle hip implant lawsuit against the makers of his hip implant, claiming that it was defective and that he suffered pain and substantial injuries.

Plaintiff Eugene M. says he was implanted with a DePuy Pinnacle hip implant in April 2004. According to this DePuy Pinnacle hip implant lawsuit, he underwent a left hip arthroplasty replacement procedure at Seton Medical Center in Austin, Texas.

He says that his hip implant had an Ultamet liner and that “after the surgery, friction and wear between the cobalt-chromium metal head and cobalt-chromium metal liner caused large amounts of toxic cobalt-chromium metal ions and particles to be released into [his] blood and tissue and bone surrounding the implant.”

Eugene asserts that in March 2017, he was bending over in the shower when he heard a “pop” and experienced pain in his left hip.

He soon went into his orthopedic surgeon to discuss his pain and his physician ordered imaging to look at the cause of his pain. Later, his doctor informed him that he had suffered a total failure of his hip implant.

The DePuy Pinnacle hip implant lawsuit claims that he had elevated levels of chromium and cobalt in concentrations of 25.3 for chromium and 24.7 for cobalt.

Eugene claims that because of metalosis, he had to undergo an additional surgery replacing the metal liner of this DePuy Pinnacle hip implant with one made of polyethylene.

Only recently becoming aware of the links between metal-on-metal hip implants and the host of possible problems, this plaintiff believes that the injuries he has undergone were as a result of the “faulty and defective nature of the Pinnacle Device and to the failure of Defendants to properly warn him and his physicians about the Pinnacle Device’s defective and faulty nature.”

He thinks that because DePuy did not issue any recall or take any other proactive action, they should be held liable for his injuries. He believes that all of his “injuries and complications” were as a result of defective design and lack of adequate warnings as well as faulty construction and the unreasonably dangerous character of the device.

According to this DePuy Pinnacle hip implant lawsuit, he believes that DePuy concealed the known defects and early failure rate of the hip implant. he alleges that he would have never agreed to be implanted with the device had he known of the risks involved.

Metal-0n-metal hip implants have been known to come with many complications including a higher risk of cancer because of metal shards that may be released when the metal pieces rub against one another. Additionally, non-cancerous tumors, swelling, inflammation, pain and premature device failure may occur.

Often, these complications necessitate revision surgery, as in Eugene’s situation. Revision surgery is more dangerous and risky than original hip replacement surgery.

The causes of action brought forth in this DePuy Pinnacle hip implant lawsuit are negligence, failure to warn, manufacturing defect, design defect, negligent misrepresentation, breach of express warranty, breach of implied warranty and fraud.

This DePuy Pinnacle Hip Implant Lawsuit is Case No. 3:17-cv-02430-K in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division.