About a month ago, civil lawsuits involving defective DePuy ASR XL hip replacements were consolidated into a multidistrict litigation in US District Court for the Eastern District of Ohio. Although the DePuy hips were recalled in August 2010, many DePuy hip patients remain unaware of the recall. Some hip patients aren’t certain they received a DePuy hip when they underwent hip replacement surgery. Others, because they are experiencing no symptoms such as difficulty walking or joint pain assume the hip recall doesn’t apply to them.
In this instance, any person who may have had a DePuy ASR XL hip implant should consult their surgeon because the problems with the DePuy hip may not reveal any symptoms. One of the issues with the DePuy hip concerns metallosis or metal poisoning that may occur because the DePuy model is a metal-on-metal device. The grinding metal may cause metal particle such as cobalt and chromium to be released into the bloodstream. This may lead to blood poisoning.
So far, approximately 150 DePuy hip lawsuits have been filed with more expected in the future. If you or a loved one suspect you may have a DePuy ASR XL hip replacement, consult your physician.