Woman Seeks Damages After Stryker Hip Replacement Fails

Sarah Nail of Arkansas claims that a faulty hip replacement manufactured by Stryker Corp. caused significant pain and suffering, as well as two surgeries for removal and repair of tissue damage.

According to her Stryker hip lawsuit, a surgeon implanted the Rejuvenate hip replacement system into Nail on May 31, 2011. Soon after, she alleges that she faced significant pain and suffering as well as problems throughout the joint replacement’s range of motion. While the device was initially installed properly, it was later found that it had been loosening and would require a revision procedure, according to her Stryker hip lawsuit. After it was removed, a second operation was necessary to deal with additional complications.

The plaintiff alleges that the cause of the device loosening was heavy metals interacting with each other that lead to corrosion and fretting of shavings of cobalt and titanium into the body. This condition, now termed metallosis, has been known to be a risk factor when those two metals are joined since the 1980s. However, the medical device maker alleged that hip replacement complications would be avoided because of a proprietary coating when the device was approved in 2007.

Instead, numerous submissions to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) Adverse Event Reporting System indicated that the two components were causing corrosion and fretting. Stryker and subsidiary Howmedica Osteonics admitted as much in an April 2012 Urgent Field Safety Notice, indicating that many Rejuvenate metal hip implant failures were occurring as a result of metallosis and resultant joint inflammation. The device is no longer sold in the United States.

The plaintiff alleges that she had no idea of the risks regarding device loosening and other Stryker metal hip implant side effects. According to the complaint, had either she or her surgeon known, they would have opted for older joint replacement options that use plastics and other materials.

The Stryker metal hip implant failure lawsuit is Sarah Nail v. Howmedica Osteonics Corp., Case No. 13-cv-02285, U.S. District Court, District of Minnesota.

Men and women who have dealt with problems because of Rejuvenate metal hip implant failures or those of related products may have legal options available. Learn more about these types of cases and who may be eligible by visiting the DePuy, Biomet, Wright Medical Technology & Others, Metal on Metal Hip Implant Class Action Lawsuit Investigation. While there, filling out the short form entitles one to a consultation with a Stryker metal hip implant lawsuit attorney for a free case eligibility review.