Stryker Offers Settlements to Hip Implant Plaintiffs

Stryker has begun to settle some of the hip implant lawsuits involved in multidistrict litigation (MDL) against the company. These lawsuits allege that Stryker’s metal-on-metal hip implants caused serious complications, sometimes requiring “revision surgery,” a medical euphemism for a second painful, invasive surgery to remove and replace a defective hip implant.

Stryker’s metal-on-metal hip implants are surgical implants designed to replace both the leg and pelvis end of the hip joint. While other prosthetic joints have interfacing surfaces made of ceramic or polymer, metal-on-metal hip joints have been dogged by lawsuits and recalls. More than six hundred similar hip implant lawsuits have joined MDL against Stryker, alleging that the company manufactured defective hip implant systems.

Stryker voluntarily recalled its metal-on-metal hip implant systems in July 2012 over concerns that the metal surfaces could corrode and fret, potentially causing the implant to fail or release toxic heavy metal ions into the patient’s blood stream. Other artificial hip manufacturers, like Johnson and Johnson’s Ethicon unit, have faced similar issues. Johnson and Johnson’s legal troubles have resulted in billions of dollars in payouts to patients.

MDLs are a type of group lawsuit, similar to more familiar class action lawsuits. In group lawsuits, a number of plaintiffs allege that they have received similar harm from the same defendant (in this case, Stryker). The main difference between an MDL and a class action lawsuit is that in an MDL, the plaintiffs retain their own legal representation, while in a class action lawsuit, all of the allegedly-injured parties are represented by the same lawyer or team of lawyers. Several hundred lawsuits have joined the hip implant MDL against Stryker.

Stryker and six plaintiffs agreed to enter mediation in an effort to resolve the lawsuits. Of the six, four have settled and been resolved according the presiding judge. The settled cases come from four different states within the United States. Initially, a total of ten of the hip implant lawsuits were slated for mediation. Three remain scheduled for January, and one had to withdraw from mediation because the plaintiff’s continuing medical treatment conflicted with the process. Despite the settlements, other parties within the MDL are still bracing for continuing litigation.

The Stryker hip implant MDL is formally titled In Re: Stryker Rejuvenate and ABG II Modular Hip Implant Litigation, Case No. BER-L-936-13, in the Superior Court of the State of New Jersey, Bergen County.

If you or someone you care about required revision surgery after receiving a Stryker metal-on-metal hip joint, you’ve almost certainly been through a trying ordeal. Even a textbook hip replacement surgery is an intensive medical procedure, complete with hospital bills and lost wages. Revision surgery complicates the recovery. Not only do patients require the removal of the original implant and replacement, but it can be a more complex surgery. Surgeons have less bone to work with, as the initial replacement usually removes part of the hip bone. This means that surgeons have a narrower margin of error. When facing such a trial, people often feel overwhelmed or even depressed.

Help for Hip Replacement Injury Victims

If you or a loved received a metal on metal hip implant after January 1, 2009, and went to experience hip replacement complications such as dislocated hip, metal poisoning, cancer, tissue death, pain or other injury, there’s still time to take legal action against the device manufacturer. These companies have already paid out millions of dollars to victims. Don’t delay – see if you qualify to pursue compensation to cover your medical bills, pain and suffering and other damages at the Metal on Metal Hip Replacement Class Action Lawsuit Investigation.