A California couple has filed a new lawsuit against Howmedica, alleging that a hip implant’s V40 femoral head failure caused serious complications.

The plaintiff, Joseph M., says he was initially implanted with a metal hip implant in May 2012. The specific device used was the Stryker Accolade II system, which includes a component called the V40 femoral head.

Unfortunately, according to the lawsuit, Joseph’s implant was defective, leading to V40 femoral head failure and causing him serious injuries, including metallosis. He alleges that he was not given adequate warning about the risks associated with V40 femoral head failure and that if he had been, he would have chosen a safer alternative.

Joseph filed his V40 femoral head failure lawsuit on April 26, 2018, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts. The lawsuit was filed on multiple counts, including negligence, defective design, manufacturing defect, failure to warn, breach of express and implied warranties, and several others. Joseph’s spouse Barbara also filed on one count of loss of consortium.

Joseph is not the first patient to have reported suffering from V40 femoral head failure and its related complications. Indeed, this is just the latest in a number of lawsuits Stryker faces over V40 femoral head failure.

The Stryker Hip Implant Recall

After receiving a slew of complaints about the V40 femoral head component included in some of its hip implant devices, Stryker issued a recall of the component. The recall was issued in Nov. 2016, affecting more than 42,000 total devices nationwide and internationally.

According to the FDA’s recall announcement, Stryker’s reason for recalling the device was “incidence of harm secondary to taper lock failure” in the recalled LFIT V40 femoral head components.

The Stryker recall came after reports of side effects were associated with Stryker’s V40 femoral head component, including metallosis, a kind of metal poisoning that can occur when the metals rub together, releasing metal particles that move into the bloodstream. Excessive levels of metals can lead to further complications.

Several Stryker hip products were affected by the Stryker V40 femoral head recall, including the Accolade TMZF, Accolade 2, Citation stems, and Meridian stems. On top of V40 femoral head failure, Stryker hip implants have also been linked with dislocation and dissociation of the device.

In many cases, serious side effects like the V40 femoral head failure or metallosis can require revision surgery to fix, replacing the defective implant. However, any additional surgery brings with it its own risks of complications, infection, and further medical expenses.

Filing a Lawsuit After V40 Femoral Head Failure

If you or someone you love was implanted with a metal hip implant and has since experienced V40 femoral head failure or other side effects, you may be able to file a class action lawsuit. While filing a lawsuit cannot take away the pain and suffering caused by the V40 femoral head failure, it can help to alleviate the financial burden of medical expenses and lost wages from these injuries.

The V40 Femoral Head Failure Lawsuit is Case No. 1:17-cv-md-02768-IT, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts.