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Hip Replacements – A Double Edged Sword

Though hip replacements help millions of people recapture mobility and find aid from joint pain, nonetheless hip replacement surgery comes with risks. More times than not prospective patients do not know that implants don’t last forever and that some hip implants do not have safe track records.

Hip Replacement

Dangers and Complexities of Hip Replacement Surgery

For the most part, people who have hip replacement surgery do not encounter significant difficulties. Dislocation is the most frequent complication, according to the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Disease. Less than two percent of patients encounter difficulties. The major complications encountered often result from infections, according to the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons.

Remarkably dilemmas only occur in certain types of implants. For instance, metal-on-metal implants may cause metallosis, yet ceramic and plastic implants without metal components do not create that side effect. Metallosis is best described as a putative medical condition comprised of the deposition and subsequent build-up of metal debris in the soft tissues of the body.

The majority of hip implants last for 10 to 15 years, although the devices wear out more swiftly if the patient has a busy lifestyle. Some implants wear out faster than others, necessitating revision surgery to replace, remove, or repair the device. It is estimated that up to 10.4 percent of hip replacements demand revision surgery, according to a 2016 study published in Arthroplasty Today.

Defective Models

The FDA approves hip replacement systems before allowing manufacturers to market them in the United States. Though sometimes it allows new devices based on confined evidence and orders manufacturers to study how they affect people. The devices are customarily recalled only if they cause a substantial number of adverse events.

The following hip implants have been the topic of adverse event reported to the FDA. Some of the hip implant devices have been recalled and completely taken off the hip implant market, whereas others have only been affected by limited recalls caused by manufacturing or packaging errors.

Manufacturers –

  • Johnson & Johnson
  • Depuy Orthopedics
  • Biomet
  • Centerpulse
  • Corin
  • Encore Orthopedics
  • Exactech
  • Smith & Nephews
  • Stryker Orthopaedics
  • Wright Medical Technology
  • Zimmer Holdings

Call the Testa Law Group at 877-780-9052 to begin your path to recovery with a free consultation today.


About The Author

Mr. Testa a Personal Injury Lawyer with a national practice who represents members of our society who have been seriously injured or killed due to the irresponsible acts of an individual or company. He is licensed to practice law in Texas, Louisiana, and Florida and admitted to practice in the Southern District of Texas and also in the United States Court of International Trade.