Johnson & Johnson in trouble for 10,000 faulty hip replacements
October 25th, 2010 - 12:58 pm ICT by IANSLondon, Oct 25 (IANS) Pharma giant Johnson & Johnson is facing a multi-million-pound legal claim after more than 10,000 patients in Britain were told their hip replacement operations needed to be reversed.
Many patients have been in excruciating pain, with some unable to walk since the operation. Now some of those affected are preparing a class action suit against Johnson & Johnson’s orthopaedic branch, DePuy, in a case which could cost the company 350 million pounds.
Over 10,000 patients have been recalled to hospital to have their operations reviewed because components used to cushion and fix the artificial joint were causing tumours and depositing toxic metal in the blood, reports the Daily Mail.
Patients receiving the faulty ASR hip implant have experienced agonising pain as the metal fittings have worn away, releasing the metals chromium and cobalt into the blood, and causing inflammation and benign tumours to form.
Experts said although the metals are naturally present within the body, tests showed some patients who had received a DePuy implant had levels which were 100 times higher than normal.
In scientific tests, the metals have been linked with cancer, and more than 1,000 people have had their operations reversed to rid their bodies of faulty hip replacements.
A letter of claim will be sent to DePuy within weeks, according to solicitors Leigh Day and Co, who are representing 78 patients in a group action against the company. Of those, 34 have already undergone painful revision surgery to remove the implant.
- Mums with metal-on-metal implants pass metal ions to kids - Mar 10, 2010
- Scientists to make joint replacement devices that would last a lifetime - Aug 10, 2010
- Iraqi woman undergoes hip replacement in Delhi - Jul 06, 2011
- 1,500 Venezuelan women sue breast implant firm - Jan 11, 2012
- Now, ankle replacement for arthritis patients - Jan 20, 2012
- Indian surgeons help Nigerian woman back on her feet - Sep 05, 2011
- Nerve cell memory holds key erasing pain - Feb 14, 2012
- iPods filled with music could help patients recover from ops faster - Dec 26, 2010
- Human trials of stem cell therapy for osteoarthritis in offing - Jul 13, 2010
- Amazing painkilling gel from rainforest - Mar 14, 2012
- Liz Hurley rushes to the dentist after agonizing tooth pains - Dec 25, 2010
- Diseased heart valve replaced through small hole in the leg - Feb 22, 2011
- Total knee replacement dramatically improves patient's condition - Feb 17, 2011
- Bionic eye implant ready for human trials - Feb 09, 2012
- Interactive robots to improve personalized orthopaedic surgeries - Oct 12, 2010
Tags: asr, benign tumours, chromium, class action suit, cobalt, daily mail, depuy, excruciating pain, hip implant, hip replacement, hip replacement operations, hip replacements, inflammation, johnson johnson, legal claim, metals, orthopaedic, pharma, solicitors, toxic metal