Hip Implant Not Giving You Problems?

If you have a hip implant or if you know someone who has had a hip replacement, the following information may be helpful to you regardless of whether the hip implant is causing you problems or injuries today.

Hip Implant Recall

One year ago, Johnson & Johnson recalled a hip implant it manufactures under the DePuy Orthopaedics label. It turns out the DePuy ASR hip implant system is faulty. It is a metal-on-metal (“MOM”) product that began being implanted in 2003. At first, DePuy marketed the hip as new technology that was the “Rolls Royce” of hip implants – it was designed to be implanted in a younger, more active population for long-term use.

Timeline of the Recall 

After only a couple years of use, problems with the device began to surface. The first reports of problems appeared in 2005. In 2007, DePuy began pulling some of its systems off the market in Australia due to widely-publicized problems, but it stayed on the market in the United States. In 2009, DePuy began a “silent recall” which involved decreasing sales and pulling some of its inventory from the market. On July 17, 2010, DePuy finally issued an official recall of the ASR Acetabular implants, more than 5 years after the problems began.

Problems with Design 

As it turns out, the device was very poorly designed. The shallow nature of the cup is different than other MOM devices in two primary ways that have caused problems:

1. It causes excessive heat and friction between the metal cup and the metal ball; and
2. The size, design and location of the resurfacing cup are three important factors that relate to the release of metal ions in the body. The design at issue here increases friction at multiple contact points between the femoral head and the acetabular cup. 

Injuries to Patients

The problems with the implant have required revision surgeries where the patient has to have the DePuy system removed and a new system put in. Some of the common symptoms and difficulties associated with the DePuy recalled product include:

• Difficulty standing or walking
• Crunching or popping noises
• Hip fractures or dislocation
• Inflammation and swelling
• Tissue and muscle infection and necrosis (which is tissue death)
• Cobalt and Chromium Toxicity also known as Metalosis
• Severe Pain
• Dislocation
• Loss of muscle mass

Metalosis

Metalosis is a common problem caused by metallic particles being released into surrounding tissue and into the bloodstream. The excessive heat and friction between the metal cup and the metal ball creates these metallic particles. The friction results in ions of chromium and cobalt being released into the body. As a result, patients are experiencing Aseptic Lymphocytic Vasculitis Associated Lesions (“ALVAL”) from heavy metal toxicity. Symptoms of metalosis include:

• Swelling in and around the implant site
• Spontaneous dislocation of the hip
• Nerve palsy
• Noticeable mass or rash
• Groin or thigh pain
• Fatigue
• Intense pain in the hip

The long-term injuries from metalosis include:

• Damage to the tissue and muscle surrounding the prosthesis, including necrosis
• Bone deterioration (may be progressive)
• Infection
• Possibly cancerous

No Problems Yet?

Many people who have had problems with their hips have had a hip replacement or revision surgery. However, many people who have the faulty product may not be currently experiencing problems with the device and they may not be aware that they need to act now to preserve their potential claims for a future revision surgery. Here’s why:

In these types of cases involving massive produce recalls affecting thousands of people, the manufacturer will enter into an agreement that stops the clock from running out on people who have been affected. What this does is allow people who don’t realize they are affected to be able to proceed at a later time when they realize they need to do something. Unfortunately DePuy and Johnson & Johnson have not done this and it looks like they are not going to. That means that people in Georgia (and other states that have only a 2 year statute of limitations) who have these faulty hip implants but have not yet experienced symptoms of pain or needed a hip revision surgery or who do not yet have high levels of cobalt and chromium toxicity will still be required to act no later than August of 2012 or lose their ability to pursue a claim against the manufacturer.

What You Need To Do

Because the deadline will most likely be August of 2012, anyone who has a hip implant (even if you have not had any adverse effects) needs to do the following:

1. Contact their surgeon to determine what type of implant they have
2. Get an appointment to have diagnostic testing performed to determine if your implant is injuring you
3. Do NOT sign a release from the surgeon or DePuy or Johnson & Johnson
4. Consider keeping a journal of the problems and treatment related to the hip implant
5. Contact an attorney that handles the DePuy cases for a free consultation as soon as possible

Please feel free to contact one of our hip implant recall attorneys for more information. Danny Studstill is located in South Georgia near Tifton and Valdosta. Haynes Studstill is located in Middle Georgia in Macon. We would be happy to speak with you and help you determine if you need to take action.

Gardasil marketed towards boys as well as girls

Much controversy has surrounded the use of the new Gardasil vaccination in girls and young women. Now the drug is also being marketed towards boys and young men. Gardasil is a vaccine which aids in the protection against HPV (human papillomavirus), a sexually-transmitted disease which can cause genital warts in both males and females. The drug is administered to individuals between the ages of 9 and 26.

Of course, this drug was only introduced in 2006 and little is known about the long-term effects this drug can cause. Some possible serious side effects that have been experienced recently include:

- Gastroenteritis;
- Appendicitis;
- Pelvic inflammatory disease (PID);
- Asthma or bronchospasms (airway spasms);
- Blood clots in the legs or lungs;
- Seizures; and
- Guillain-Barré syndrome.

There have also been 49 reported deaths connected with the use of Gardasil according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System.

While Merck insists its products are safe for use by individuals between the ages of 9 and 26, we at the Studstill Firm, LLP encourage you to discuss the risks with your doctor or child’s doctor prior to using this product. If you or anyone you know has been injured by this or any other pharmaceutical product, contact us for a free consultation about your potential case.

Medical Malpractice Caps Video - The Nestlehutts

Sometime this month, it is expected that the Georgia Supreme Court will rule on the caps on damages in medical malpractice cases. The caps were put into place by the Georgia Legislature in 2005 and cap certain damages given to injured patients and their families by Georgia juries.

For more information, you can watch this video explaining the caps and detailing the case that is being decided by the Georgia Supreme Court.

Tort Reform: Fact or Fiction?

The American Association for Justice (AAJ) article appearing today in the Huffington Post calls the proposed tort reform measures what they really are: a DISTRACTION from the Health Care debate. When you examine each of the main reasons proponents of tort reform routinely give as facts, they turn out to be myths. The AAJ explains the key myths and facts:
Myth #1: There are too many "frivolous" malpractice lawsuits.
Fact: There's an epidemic of medical negligence, not lawsuits. Only one in eight people injured by medical negligence ever file suit. Civil filings have declined eight percent over the last decade, and are less than one percent of the whole civil docket. A 2006 Harvard study found that 97 percent of claims were meritorious, stating, "portraits of a malpractice system that is stricken with frivolous litigation are overblown."
Myth #2: Malpractice claims drive up health care costs.
Fact: According to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, the total spent defending claims and compensating victims of medical negligence was just 0.3% of health care costs, and the Congressional Budget Office and Government Accountability Office have made similar findings.
Myth #3: Doctors are fleeing.
Fact: Then where are they going? According to the American Medical Association's own data, the number of practicing physicians in the United States has been growing steadily for decades. Not only are there more doctors, but the number of doctors is increasing faster than population growth. Despite the cries of physicians fleeing multiple states, the number of physicians increased in every state, and only four states saw growth slower than population growth; these four states all have medical malpractice caps.
Myth #4: Malpractice claims drive up doctors' premiums.
Fact: Empirical research has found that there is little correlation between malpractice payouts and malpractice premiums paid by doctors. A study of the leading medical malpractice insurance companies' financial statements by former Missouri Insurance Commissioner Jay Angoff found that these insurers artificially raised doctors' premiums and misled the public about the nature of medical negligence claims. A previous AAJ report on malpractice insurers found they had earnings higher than 99% of Fortune 500 companies.
Myth #5: Tort reform will lower insurance rates.
Fact: Tort reforms are passed under the guise that they will lower physicians' liability premiums. This does not happen. While insurers do pay out less money when damages awards are capped, they do not pass the savings along to doctors by lowering premiums. Even the most ardent tort reformers have been caught stating that tort reform will have no effect on insurance rates.

As a medical malpractice and injury law firm, we see firsthand how often medical mistakes are made that destroy or permanently change lives. According to the AAJ article, over 98,000 people die every year from preventable medical errors, which is the same as having two 737 jets crashing every day for a whole year.

Instead of focusing on tort law changes that won't fix health care and won't reduce insurance premiums, let's make sure people aren't injured or killed in the first place. Not only will that lower costs, but most importantly, will improve health care for everyone.

If you or a loved one has been injured or killed as a result of a medical mistake or medical error, please contact us now for a free consultation about your potential claim.

Debating Health Care Reform and Damage Caps

The Atlanta Journal Constitution features a good opinion piece on the health care reform debate and analyzes the Pros and Cons of damage caps on liability. Personally, I think the Cons are stronger arguments. Here is a link to the article in the AJC - it is well worth reading. Let me know what you think.

Georgia Medical Malpractice Caps

This week, the Georgia Supreme Court heard oral arguments on the constitutionality of a Georgia law that puts a limit (cap) on the amount of damages a victim of medical malpractice can obtain. Currently, O.C.G.A. § 51-13-1 (commonly referred to as SB3) limits the non-economic damages (also known as pain and suffering damages) in a medical malpractice case to $350,000. The relevant portion of SB3 reads as follows:

"In any verdict returned or judgment entered in a medical malpractice action, including an action for wrongful death, against one or more health care providers, the total amount recoverable by a claimant for noneconomic damages in such action shall be limited to an amount not to exceed $350,000.00, regardless of the number of defendant health care providers against whom the claim is asserted or the number of separate causes of action on which the claim is based."

This means that no matter how severe an individual's pain and suffering is or how much a jury awards to a plaintiff for their pain and suffering, the plaintiff will only be allowed to collect $350,000.

But what is pain and suffering worth? What is the pain and suffering worth that Mrs. Nestlehutt endured when her plastic surgeon so severly damaged the skin on her face that her face literally fell off? The jury in her case said it was worth $900,000.

The case is Nestlehutt v. Atlanta Oculoplastic Surgery, P.C., d/b/a Oculus and was filed in 2007. The trial court judge, Judge Diane Bessen, ruled that the cap on non-economic damages violates the Constitution on 3 grounds: the right to trial by jury, the separation of powers doctrine, and the equal protection of the laws. Judge Bessen wrote:

"A limit or cap on noneconomic damages, however, invades the right to a jury trial by usurping one of the fact-finding responsibilities of the jury. If the amount of noneconomic damages awarded by the jury exceeds the statutory cap, this Code section automatically and arbitrarily reduces the verdict, without consideration of the evidence, the record, or any other fact produced at trial and found by the jury. The limitations imposed by O.C.G.A. 51-13-1 render the right of the jury to assess damages meaningless… The cap so interferes with the determination of the jury that it renders the right of a jury trial wholly unavailable."

The question the Georgia Supreme Court faces is this: is it proper for the Georgia Legislature to make a law that takes away our firmly entrenched right to a jury in order to keep more money in the pockets of doctors and insurance companies? The news media goes to great lengths to spin tort reform as a way to reduce healthcare costs. But the numbers don't support their claims. Is a 2% reduction in medical spending really worth taking away the rights of patients? Our hope is that the Georgia Supreme Court will curb this legislation that protects only doctors at the expense of those they hurt the most. We will all have to wait and see.

You can watch the video here and listen to the arguments from both sides and then decide for yourself. Feel free to post your comments or opinions on the arguments.