An Illinois man has filed a lawsuit against makers of a hip replacement component, the Stryker v40 femoral head, claiming he suffered injuries and was forced to undergo an explantation of his device.

Plaintiff Phillip S. was implanted with an LFIT Anatomic CoCr v40 Femoral Head on his right hip in March 2015. This medical device that Phillip had implanted was the Accolade II hip replacement system manufactured by Stryker.

Part of this system, the Stryker v40 femoral head, was removed in October 2016 by his same surgeon because of complications regarding the hip replacement. Phillip claims he suffered injuries to himself and economic loss as a result of his procedures.

He alleges that Stryker, by their “actions or inactions,” caused the injuries he suffered and that he could not have known that the injuries incurred were a result of a defect in the Stryker v40 femoral head. He would not have known about the potential injuries and complications until after the device was recalled from the market; it was then Phillip came to learn of the recall.

Additionally, Phillip alleges that he could never have known that he suffered increased and excessive levels of chromium and cobalt until after his blood was drawn and the doctor informed him of the results of the blood work. He alleges that the excessive levels of chromium and cobalt in his blood were as a result of the defective Stryker v40 metal femoral head device.

He is bringing forth counts of 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, negligent misrepresentation, loss of consortium and unjust enrichment. Additionally, Phillip claims violation of the Massachusetts Consumer Protection Act as well as violation of consumer fraud and unfair and deceptive trade practices under state law.

This Stryker v40 Femoral Head Lawsuit is Case No. 1:17-cv-12094 in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts.

Problems With the Stryker v40 Femoral Head

The Stryker Accolade hip replacement system utilizes the Stryker v40 femoral head that fits into the acetabular cup of the device. Both of these components are made of metal. This metal-on-metal design has been the subject of many product liability lawsuits against Stryker because of many complications.

The constant rubbing of the metal components on one another can cause tiny bits of metal, namely chromium and cobalt, to be shed from the device. These bits of metal leak into the surrounding tissue and blood. This can cause a condition known as metallosis, which is metal poisoning of the blood or tissue, and can also lead to tissue death.

Also, there are other potential complications associated with the Stryker v40 femoral head device including disassociation of the femoral head from hip stem, a fractured hip stem trunnion, excessive metallic debris, noise and loss of bone fixation strength.

These problems can lead to loss of mobility, the need for revision surgery, inflammatory response, adverse tissue reaction, dislocation, joint instability, pain, bone fracture and leg length discrepancy.