Another major manufacturer of hip replacement devices Stryker has confirmed that it has reached a settlement in thousands of lawsuits involving now re-called all metal hip devices.
The agreement will cost the company about $1billion and represents one of the highest ever amounts paid by an implant manufacturer to resolve claims by Patients who allege that they were injured by the all-metal device. This latest settlement of a class action comes following an agreement by DePuy in 2013 to pay about $2.5 billion to resolve 8000 lawsuits filed against them. In those claims patients alleged that they were injured by the Articular Surface Replacement (ASR). This is an all metal hip which had a ball and cup component both made from metal rather than a mix of metal, ceramic and plastic as in other devices.
Speaking about the latest settlement Liam Moloney, Solicitor in Naas said today “metal-on-metal implants have largely been abandoned in the face of evidence that as the hips components rub together they create tiny metallic particles that can enter the patients’ bloodstream and damage tissue and muscle.
Many thousands of legal actions have been taken by patients who have reported injuries including pain, loosening of the joint, hip dislocation, difficulty walking and elevated chromium and cobalt in the blood. Many of these patients unfortunately have had to have revision surgery to remove and replace the all metal hips.
