DePuy Hip Recall Impacts Seattle, Bellevue and Tacoma, Washington Implant Patients

DePuy Orthopaedic, Inc. has recalled the ASR XL Acetabular and Hip Resurfacing Systems due to a high revision rate. On August 24, 2010 DePuy announced that they would no longer sell the medical devices in the United States. Hip replacement patients were advised to meet with their orthopedic hip replacement surgeon to determine if they might require to have the hip device "revised" which means removed and replaced with a different implant.

The DePuy artificial hip was manufactured by DePuy Orthopaedic which is a subsidiary of the medical giant, Johnson & Johnson. Patients who had the device implanted were told that it would last for 15 or more years. However, patients who had the device implanted for a much shorter time started experiencing severe pain, problems walking, loosening, bone fractures, dislocation, swelling, tumors, bone staining, necrosis, nerve damage, tissue damage, and muscle damage.  Some surgeons found dead tissue in the thighs of some patients when they went into to remove the implant. There is also concern that the artificial hip may cause metallosis or cobalt/chromium poisoning.

The Farber Law Group is concerned that some patients with a DePuy hip have become seriously ill due to the device or will soon suffer devastating injury in the future. One study found that the device has a five year failure rate in 1 of every 8 patients with the implant. With more than 93,000 persons world-wide to have the device implanted, that means approximately 11,000 people will need to undergo a second hip replacement surgery or a "revision." This number may soar over time.