A Washington woman filed a metal-on-metal hip replacement lawsuit against DePuy Orthopaedics over injuries she allegedly suffered from using one of the company’s metal hip implants. The hip implant lawsuit alleges DePuy’s Pinnacle device was used to replace her failing hip joints, but caused her injuries due to the design defects of the product.

On July 20, 2010 plaintiff Debra Hart reportedly underwent total right hip replacement with the Pinnacle device with the Ultamet lining. The Ultamet lining was laced with a a proprietary metal combination of cobalt and chromium. However, the metal ions were shed into the patient’s body due to the ball and socket joint of the device interacting, the hip implant lawsuit alleges.

Due to the shedding of the metal ions, Hart allegedly suffered infection in the surrounding bone and tissue, inflammation, discomfort, severe pain, and immobility. According to her DePuy metal hip implant lawsuit, the ions caused the metal levels in her blood to raise, which ultimately resulted in metallosis, or blood-metal poisoning. Eventually, the plaintiff had the device removed.

Hart’s hip implant lawsuit alleges DePuy is directly responsible for manufacturing, selling, distributing, and marketing a dangerous product and accuses the company of negligence, false advertising, concealing information, and misrepresenting a product.

Overview of Metal-on-Metal Implant Complications

DePuy Orthopaedics first created and marketed the Pinnacle hip implant in the early 2000s, but reportedly became aware of design effects in 2007. Like most metal-on-metal hip implants, the Pinnacle was released on the belief it would be superior to its ceramic and plastic cousins. Based on pre-clinical studies, metal hip implants were believed to last longer and were able to have more endurance than other hip replacements due to the resilience of the metals. Additionally, some metal hip implants could be fitted to each patient’s frame, allowing the recovery process to be less strenuous.

Unfortunately, the Pinnacle also fell to the same pitfalls as the other metal hip implants in its design flaws. Most of the metal hip replacements had some blend of cobalt and chromium in the components, which were designed to be biologically safe. This theory was disproved as patients reportedly suffered from the metal ions that were shed into the bloodstream, causing a variety of problems.

This DePuy Hip Implant Lawsuit is Debra Hart v. DePuy Orthopaedics, Case No. 3:14-cv-02277, in the U.S. District Court of Northern Texas, Dallas Division.