Zimmer Hip & Knee Replacement Lawsuits

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Medical malpractice, product liability, and personal injury Zimmer hip and knee lawsuits have accumulated in large numbers with no clear end yet in sight. Federal multidistrict litigation (MDL) has allowed Durom Cup plaintiffs to consolidate their lawsuits for purposes of fact-finding and pretrial rulings, possibly making it easier for these matters to be brought to final resolution or settlement. As Zimmer hip and knee lawsuit cases continue to make their way through the courts, additional victims of these device failures are beginning the process of seeking accountability and financial compensation.

The Corpus Christi product liability lawyers at Bandas Law Firm, P.C. represent individuals who have suffered serious injuries or complications due to Zimmer hip and knee replacement surgery. We can help you understand your legal options and fight for the full, fair recovery you are owed.

Problems with Zimmer’s Durom Cup Emerge

Most of the trouble faced by Zimmer in relation to its knee replacement devices stems from the Durom Acetabular Component, often referred to simply as the Durom Cup. Designed as a substitute for the natural acetabulum (hip socket), the Durom Cup is fabricated from a piece of alloy metal. Zimmer believed that this product was an ideal solution for younger hip replacement patients who desired a greater range of motion in order to maintain their vigorous lifestyles because it featured a larger head diameter than traditional devices. Unfortunately for patients, it was not long until many began to experience displacement and shifting of the Durom Cup, resulting in debilitating pain and mobility losses. An alarming number of Zimmer hip implant recipients needed revision surgery to ameliorate the discomfort and correct the situation.

High Failure Rates Lead to Sizable Settlements & Verdicts

Failure estimates for the Zimmer Duron Cup hip device have been placed at roughly 30 percent. Partly in response to this alarming track-record, marketing and sales of the implant were temporarily halted in 2008. The reason for the suspension was said to be that the instructions for surgical use were insufficient and that physicians required additional training with the products. Though the implants were reintroduced soon after, they have continued to be linked to severe joint pain, required revision surgery, and excessive pain and suffering among implant recipients. The large number of affected patients led to the 2010 creation of a multidistrict litigation (MDL) process in federal court to facilitate coordination of factual discovery tasks and critical pretrial judicial decisions.

The Zimmer hip MDL has produced a significant number of successful settlements, though many hundreds of unresolved cases are still progressing through state and federal courts nationwide. Zimmer eventually placed $50 million in a reserve settlement fund, a figure that has continued to rise. A 2012 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission revealed that Zimmer had, to date, paid more than $388 million in Durom Cup claims and that the company expected to pay at least $230 million more before conclusions were reached in all outstanding claims.

In August of 2015, a California jury found in favor of the plaintiff in a Zimmer Duron Cup hip lawsuit, awarding him $9.2 million. The outcome came at the end of a trial lasting three weeks, in which the plaintiff presented evidence of the muscle damage and pain he experienced due to the defective hip implant.

Problems with Zimmer Persona Knee Components

Brought to the U.S. market a mere three years ago, Zimmer touted its Persona knee components as a true innovation in the field, able to provide an unsurpassed fit to an individual patient’s distinct anatomy and biomechanical requirements. As it turns out, however, reports of serious problems with the devices began to emerge to in such volume as to prompt the device manufacturer to voluntarily recall more than 11,000 units of its Persona Trabecular Metal Tibial Plate system. The FDA quickly followed up with its own Class II recall dated March 12 of 2015. A Class II recall is issued by the FDA if and when a product is found to potentially produce temporary or reversible health effects that are adverse in nature, but the issues associated with the product have the ability to cause serious complications.

Zimmer Persona Knee Litigation Expected to Take Root

Those who have experienced serious pain and suffering as a result of their defective Zimmer Persona knee components are expected to begin filing lawsuits as a means to secure financial compensation as well as a degree of accountability on the part of the device manufacturer. Such lawsuits are likely to allege that Zimmer did not perform an adequate amount of research and testing prior to aggressively bringing these implants to market, ultimately causing them harm.

Typical complications and injuries likely to be alleged by Zimmer Persona plaintiffs include:

• Excessive fluid build-up
• Tissue debris accumulations
• Bone damage, known as osteolysis
• Severe pain
• Excessive amounts of swelling
• Losses or reductions in mobility

Because litigation pertaining to Zimmer Persona knee components is in still its infancy, it is difficult to predict just how voluminous lawsuits of this nature will eventually grow to be. However, given the frequency with which our aging population undergoes total knee replacement procedures, it seems reasonable to assume that these cases will pose yet another major obstacle to Zimmer’s recovery from past legal troubles including large-scale lawsuits over its Durom Cup hip devices and NexGen knee components.

Why a Patient Might File a Zimmer Hip Lawsuit

Filing a Zimmer hip lawsuit can help victims of the defective devices secure much-needed financial compensation and boost public awareness of the negligent manner in which implants were brought to market and sold to patients who relied on their safety.

Typical compensation categories available in a lawsuit of this nature could include:

• Payment to make the plaintiff whole after being unable to work
• Payment to replace lost income potential
• Funds to cover the medical costs of revision surgery, associated physical therapy, and prescription drugs
• Payment for pain, suffering, and significant emotional distress

Though a large number of Zimmer hip lawsuits have already been resolved through mediation and other modes of settlement, new claims continue to arise and cases are almost certain to be ongoing for the foreseeable future.