Howmedica Osteonics, or its pseudonym Stryker Orthopaedics, is facing a lawsuit that alleges the company of damages resulting from a faulty or malfunctioned hip implant replacement prosthetic.

The action files for damages against the malfunctioned product sold by the name of “The Accolade TMZF Hip Stem and LFIT Anatomic V40 Femoral Head.”

Plaintiff Joseph B., a resident of South Carolina, had experienced discomfort in the hip after the defective product, or Accolade TMZF had been surgically implanted. The complaint claims that once the defendant had tested the product and received FDA clearance to sell the prosthetic hip on March 16, 2000, the defected product was implanted in the plaintiff on November 17, 2005.

According to the complaint, however, that because of the implant, “the plaintiff was forced to have the device surgically removed. Upon removal, it was apparent the device had failed causing gross deformation of the Accolade TMZF Stem together with severe and permanent tissue and muscle damage.”

Joseph B. asserts, additionally, that present and future physical and mental suffering will continue to occur; this includes and will not be limited to any drug, rehabilitation and medically related expenses and damages.

The defendant, Howmedica Osteonics or Stryker Orthpaedics, and its parent company, Styker Corporation, hold themselves as, “one of the world’s leading medical technology companies and is dedicated to helping healthcare professionals perform their jobs more efficiently while enhancing patient care,” the complaint claims.

The prosthetic, or the Accolade TMZF Stem, is made specifically for patients who require a total hip arthroplasty or any such “replacement” due to common diseases of the joint.

The Accolade TMZF Stem is described as a “monoblock,” one that is characterized as being a “single piece of artificial hip replacement device” that is inserted into the femoral joint of a patient’s leg.

Additionally, “the Accolade TMZF Stem is designed to be used with any number of bearing surface components comprised of the modular ball or artificial femoral head and an acetabular cup or socket.” The stem is comprised of titanium, molybdenum, zinc and iron, meanwhile, the femoral head is made up of chromium/cobalt alloy.

The purpose of the Accolade TMZF was to help increase such things as a patient’s stability, increase range of motion, and thwart any possibility of dislocation.

Stryker Orthopaedics’ promotional sales of the product, which includes the combination of the TMZF Stem and LFIT Anatomic V40 Femoral Head, was marketed to be both “stronger and less rigid than other titanium alloys.” It was claimed that they would both not succumb to any such corrosion effects.

However, according to the lawsuit, what occurred was fretting and corrosion specifically at the junction where these two metals are combined and joined. The combination of the Accolade TMZF Hip Stem and LFIT Anatomic V40 Femoral Head caused the dissemination of the prosthetic at the juncture and led to the surgical removal of the device.

This issue resulted despite numerous laboratory testing and data that showed the synergy of the two materials.

Joseph B. alleges that Stryker Orthopaedics is in violation of numerous accounts. These are negligence, breach of express warranty under Pennsylvania Law, failure to warn under Pennsylvania Common Law, design defect under Pennsylvania Law which accounts for strict liability, manufacturing defect under Pennsylvania Common Law, also under strict liability, and punitive damages under Common Law

Joseph B. requests a demand for jury trial and will be awarded compensatory damages as deemed necessary by the court.

The Howmedica Osteonics and Stryker Sales Corporation prosthetic hip lawsuit is Joseph B. v. Howmedica Osteonics and Stryker Sales Corporation, Case 2:17-cv-01395-AB, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.