DePuy’s replacement devices have been beset by legal issues over the years. The company is coming off a multibillion legal hit from the metal-on-metal hip replacement that caused serious injuries and required revision surgeries. Now, two more replacements find themselves the subject of allegations of defects and lawsuits. Specifically, if you received the following and have been injured, you should speak with a product liability attorney about financial compensation:

• DePuy Radial Head Replacement System
• DePuy Attune knee replacement system

Attune Knee Replacements Have High Revision Surgery Rates

When patients have a knee replacement, they want to know that it is done right, and they will not need revision surgery to take out their replacement and implant a new one. However, that is exactly what is happening with the Attune knee replacement. Research studies have shown that this medical device has a high failure rate, resulting in the need for revision surgeries. This increases the burden on patients because every surgical procedure requires a recovery and rehabilitation period. In addition, patients also suffer when their device is still in their body, and it is not working as it should.

The Problem with the Knee Replacement Is That it Loosens

The Journal of Knee Surgery has documented the problems with the DePuy knee replacement. The specific problem with Attune is that the device experiences “tibial loosening.” This is when the plate that is attached to a leg bone becomes loose, and it can lead to instability. There are hundreds of complaints each year about these issues, and this represents the part of the FDA’s MAUDE database that was visible to the public.

When there is tibial loosening, patients can experience the following:

• Swelling
• Infection
• Inflammation’
• Decreased motion
• Bone damages

Research shows that many of these problems happen within two years of the original knee replacement surgery. This is far less than the usual 15-year lifespan that patients expect when they first have the surgery.

What You Can Recover in a DePuy Attune Knee Replacement Lawsuit

Even if there is no long-term injury, patients can still be paid compensation for what they go through when they need a revision surgery. Their damages can include the following:

• The cost of the new surgery and medical device
• Time missed from work to undergo a new procedure
• Cost of physical therapy
• Loss of enjoyment of their life
• Pain and suffering

Injured patients began filing Attune lawsuits in 2017. With thousands of reports of defects made to the FDA, one can expect that many lawsuits will follow. If the number of lawsuits continues to grow, there may be multidistrict litigation in the future. Right now, there are numerous cases in federal courts around the country.

Knee Replacement Lawsuit Grounds

One example of this is a 2019 lawsuit filed by a woman in federal court in Colorado. Her lawsuit alleges the following:

• DePuy changed the design on a previous version of a highly-effective knee replacement to maintain its profits and competitive position.
• The FDA approved it without testing because it was substantially equivalent to a previously approved product.
• The Attune knee replacement system was far more expensive than the previous design, but did not deliver the promised results, and it was more dangerous.
• DePuy was aware of a high rate of failure through adverse event reports, but it still continued to sell hundreds of thousands of knee replacements.
• DePuy tried to replace a key component that led to failures in an updated version of the knee replacement without notifying the public.

The woman eventually needed revision surgery, and she is now seeking compensation for it. With over 400,000 Attune knee replacements sold, you can expect that there will be more reported problems in the future and a growing number of court cases.

Radial Head Replacement System Lawsuits

The Radial Head Replacement System is an elbow implant that replaces the joint. Patients require elbow replacement surgery after years of effects from conditions like arthritis cause the joint to wear down and degrade. They may also need an elbow replacement when they suffer a severe fracture in the elbow that cannot fully be repaired.

This medical device has experienced the same exact problems as Attune. Patients have reported a loosening of the device, which also results in the need for a revision surgery. Once a patient has a revision surgery, it lowers the chances of future procedures being successful. The loosening of the elbow replacement could also lead to bone damage in the area.

Symptoms of Elbow Device Loosening

The problem is that many patients do not know that their device has loosened until they are already in serious pain, and the elbow replacement has already caused damage. Patients may experience the following symptoms:

• proximal radial arm pain
• localized swelling
• trouble turning or extending and distending your elbow within the normal range of motion
• Post-operative fracture

DePuy took this product off the market in December 2016 in response to multiple complaints of joint loosening. This took over 50,000 elbow replacement devices off of shelves. The device is no longer sold, but the lawsuits are still coming in.

By the time that this device was discontinued, the FDA had received dozens of reports of this problem. This is on top of even more “secret” reports that were in the FDA’s system but not available to the general public. Before that, thousands of patients had received these elbow replacements. Even today, patients who had this surgery years ago may still find that they need a revision surgery. They may be able to receive financial compensation for the revision surgery and the pain that they encounter.

Patients still need to be aware of these issues if they have the Radial Head Replacement System. If they have already started to feel pain, they may have a limited amount of time to file a lawsuit. If they miss the deadline, they may lose the right to file a lawsuit entirely. If you overlook the symptoms, you may have been deemed to know of the injury earlier. Therefore, you should contact an attorney at the first sign of trouble with your elbow. If you are a victim of an Exactech knee replacement, you should seek legal advice.