A startling number of Americans have had hip revision surgery due to complications allegedly caused by the DePuy ASR hip implant system.

At least half a million Americans have had hip replacement surgery. Often, these patients receive a metal-on-metal hip implant like the DePuy ASR hip implant system developed by Johnson & Johnson. This model has been a popular option for many hip replacement surgeries.

Despite its past popularity, the DePuy ASR hip implant system has been the source of thousands of lawsuits and settlements. Many individuals have been forced to undergo hip revision surgery due to complications allegedly caused by the DePuy ASR hip implant.

In a hip revision surgery, the existing hip implant is removed and replaced with another device. These surgeries may be especially difficult if the patient had a local reaction to the original implant that may have affected the soft tissue or bone quality.

Patients who undergo revision surgery have to pay unexpected medical costs, lose wages from work for recovery time, and risk their wellbeing to undergo another surgery. Risks of revision surgery include anesthesia complications, excessive bleeding, blood clots, infection, pulmonary embolism, and further implant failure.

Problems with Hip Replacements

In August 2010, the FDA announced a recall of 93,000 hip implants worldwide due to data from the UK joint registry that found 13% of DePuy ASR hip implants require hip revision surgery to correct debilitating complications.

Complications allegedly caused by the DePuy ASR hip implant system include: failure of the implant requiring early replacement, dislocated hip, leaking of toxic substances like chromium or cobalt into the bloodstream, cancer, degenerative heart disease, cardiomyopathy, loss of bone strength or structure, tissue death surrounding the implant, non-cancerous tumors or pseudotumors around the hip implant, and metal poisoning.

Most of the reported complications result from a leakage of chromium or cobalt into the surrounding tissues which can cause cancer, metal poisoning, and tissue damage. This occurs due to the metal-on-metal design of the DePuy ASR hip implant system.

Metallosis complications have been reported by patients implanted with the DePuy Pinnacle hip replacement and other all-metal hip implants. According to the FDA, “metal particles from a metal-on-metal implant may cause a reaction around the joint, leading to deterioration of the tissue around the joint, loosening of the implant and failure of the device”.

DePuy ASR Hip Implant System Lawsuits

Johnson & Johnson faces nearly 8,000 lawsuits regarding the DePuy ASR hip implant system. They already agreed to settle the first lawsuits concerning the DePuy ASR hip implant system. In August 2012, Johnson & Johnson announced they would pay a combined $600,000 to settle three DePuy ASR hip implant system lawsuits filed by patients who suffered debilitating complications.

There is a DePuy ASR settlement offer for those hip implant patients who underwent hip revision surgery after March 2015.

The DePuy ASR settlement process is reportedly long and complicated. It is important to speak with a DePuy ASR hip implant attorney to provide guidance and ensure the maximum compensation is recovered. For those who qualify, participating in the DePuy ASR hip implant settlement could result in thousands of dollars for affected individuals.