Stryker Hip Lawsuit Seeks Damages for Revision Surgery

Louisiana plaintiff Joyce LeJeune is suing Stryker Corporation for the injuries she sustained from their metal-on-metal hip replacement module, the Rejuvenate system. LeJeune is suing Stryker for allowing a defective product to be available to the market and for not warning the medical community or the public at large.

LeJeune had to have the Stryker Rejuvenate implanted into her in July 2011 due to total hip failure. Soon after the hip replacement surgery, the plaintiff  felt discomfort from the simplest actions and was suffering from limited mobility. The plaintiff had to undergo hip revision surgery on July 8, 2013, and is still trying to cover the rising medical costs, according to the Stryker hip lawsuit.

Stryker is facing charges for designing, distributing, manufacturing, selling, and marketing a defective product. These charges include negligence, false advertising, concealing information, and misrepresenting a product.

LeJeune is suing Stryker for more than $75,000 in damages for medical compensation, pain and suffering, and other punitive damages. 

The Stryker hip lawsuit is Joyce LeJeune vs. Stryker Corporation, Case No.: 0:13-cv-02111-DWF-FLN, in the United States District Court Western District of Louisiana Lake Charles Division. 

Overview of Stryker Rejuvenate Hip Replacement Complications

The Rejuvenate Modular Hip System was first approved by the FDA in February 2009 and is manufactured by Stryker Corporation. The Rejuvenate System is a hip replacement system made up of several metal components, meant for patients who need total hip replacement from arthritis or other disabling conditions. The components that make up the Rejuvenate hip system are a chrome cobalt modular neck that fits into a titanium femoral stem, which simulates the body’s natural conjoining hip joint. 

When the Rejuvenate System was first thought up, the alloys that made up device were designed to take heavy endurance and were thought to last longer than other metal on metal hip implants, as well as their plastic and ceramic cousins. Unfortunately, like many of its metal hip predecessors, the Rejuvenate System soon caught the same heat and criticism for metal corrosion, device failure, and hip infection.

Upon further investigation, the FDA discovered that it received numerous injury reports regarding the Stryker Rejuvenate Hip System, reporting metallosis (blood metal poisoning), tissue infection, and some even reported device failure. Medical testing showed that when the ball-and-socket joints of the hip implant rubbed against each other, metal particles corroded off the product and fell into the blood stream, leading to the blood poisoning and tissue infection. Many medical and legal experts attribute the hip implant failures to the FDA’s 401(k) policy.

The FDA’s 401(k) policy is a manufacturing guideline to which some medical companies can follow. This guideline states that if the product in question can be proven to work as well as a similar product that has already been released to the market, then the product may pass through. No testing or clinical trials are required for products that qualify for this guideline.

In April 2012, Stryker issued an urgent safety warning to surgeons and hospitals in the United States, warning them of device failure, metal poisoning, and hip infection caused by the Stryker Rejuvenate. Several months later on July 6, 2012, the FDA and Stryker did a voluntary recall of all Rejuvenate and ABG II hip replacement systems.

File a Rejuvenate Hip Replacement Lawsuit Today

If you believe that you or a loved one has been the victim of a Stryker Rejuvenate injury, you have legal options. Please visit the Stryker Metal Hip Implant Recall Class Action Lawsuit Investigation. There, you can submit your claim for a free legal review and if it qualifies for legal action, a seasoned Stryker hip lawsuit lawyer will contact you for a free, no-obligation consultation. You will be guided through the litigation process at no out-of-pocket expenses or hidden fees. The metal hip injury lawyers working this investigation do not get paid until you do.