North Carolina Product Liability Lawyer Blog

Articles Posted in Artificial Hip

12: Victim of Defective Artificial Hip Tells Her Story

Published on: April 29, 2021 | By Clay Hodges

In this week’s episode, Clay’s friend and former client shares her experience from recovering from not one, but three hip replacement surgeries. “Amy” discusses her journey from discovering her need for hip replacement surgery, to having the surgery, to how she knew the product was defective, and through her recovery process.

This conversation is full of important information if you have or think you may need a hip replacement. Join Clay Hodges in this episode to learn more about Amy’s experience with a defective hip replacement.

Physical Therapist: Problems with Metal-on-Metal Hip Failures (Part 3)

Published on: November 5, 2020 | By Clay Hodges

Today I finish my conversation with Physical Therapist Amy Dougherty on specific problems that may arise with metal-on-metal artificial hip failures:

Clay: Over the past ten years you have seen a lot of metal-on-metal hip implants. Several years ago an attempt was made to put a metal-on-metal artificial hip together, and that was supposed to last forever, or last a whole lot longer, and it turned out that it was problematic. And I know you have had many patients who have had that [implant]. What did you see out of the metal-on-metal hip implants when they were failing?

Amy: Again, the first cardinal sign that I saw was chronic pain, an inability to weight bear normally through that joint. So even after normal hip replacement, the patient should be able to weight bear through it. It should not feel like they collapse on that hip, and so a limp that never resolves or an inability to get away from an assistive device. So, I had a patient in her 50s that could not get off a walker. She was 50. She was playing tennis five days a week before she had her hip replaced. Yes, with the metal-on-metal she suffered metallosis and she had an overt failure of that joint replacement. She was a candidate for this new [metal-on-metal implant], now widely known to be a bad device, because she was so young, active, fit, and healthy. It was supposed to last for longer. It was supposed to allow her to have more function larger range of motion, less risk of dislocation and all of those things. So as we know, that did not really work out so well.

Physical Therapist: What It Feels Like When Artificial Hips Fail (Part 2)

Published on: October 28, 2020 | By Clay Hodges

Let’s dive back in to my hip replacement surgery conversation with Physical Therapist Amy Dougherty, who discusses what sports to avoid after hip surgery and what it feels like when a person suffer an artificial hip failure:

Safe and Unsafe Activities and Sports

Clay: What are some sports that you would discourage [after hip replacement surgery]? I know there is a huge range of results and people who are dealing with certain physical issues. But are there any sports you’ve seen as a physical therapist that you say “Do not do this after hip replacement surgery?”

Physical Therapist Discusses Hip Replacement Surgery, Recovery (Part 1)

Published on: October 21, 2020 | By Clay Hodges

My friend Amy Dougherty is a physical therapist in North Carolina and operates Outer Banks Physical Therapy. She is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (where I also attended college and law school). She is an outstanding physical therapist and is beloved by her patients on the Outer Banks. Amy answers many of your questions about hip replacement surgery, metal-on-metal artificial hips, and the problems that have arisen from these hip products.

Clay: I want to focus on hip replacement surgery and I know you work with patients who are dealing with that kind of surgery every week. So let me start by asking what are a few reasons a person might need a hip replacement surgery?

Amy: You know, the most common reason is arthritic changes in the hip. So basically arthritis, that is the most common reason. Other reasons can include things like trauma. Some people have congenital mal-alignments where, it is basically called dysplasia where through the process of their development in utero and then following their bony surfaces of the femur, that is the long thigh bone and the acetabulum which is in the pelvis. They do not form correctly, so they might have ill-formed femoral heads. They might have ill-formed or ill-shaped acetabulum. So, the ball and the socket are not really designed well to weight bear. So, a lot of folks that, especially in a young population, that have early onset hip replacements. It is more likely the result of some type of congenital dysplasia. It could be a trauma. So, but arthritic changes is the number one reason and I have total hip replacement patients in my clinic every day. Very popular surgery, yes.

Smith & Nephew Birmingham Hip Litigation Delayed by COVID-19

Published on: July 3, 2020 | By Clay Hodges

COVID-19 has altered everyone’s schedule. Schools, colleges, and restaurants have closed. Even courts have shut down for non-urgent hearings and trials. In June, Judge Catherine Blake, overseeing the Smith & Nephew Birmingham hip litigation, issued an amended Case Management Order to extend discovery deadlines and bellwether trial dates for the multidistrict litigation.

Remember the Smith & Nephew Birmingham hip MDL is moving forward on two tracks: one set of cases involve the BHR components that were used in hip resurfacing procedures, and a second set of cases (“THA Track”) involve those individuals who received Birmingham hip components as part of a total hip arthroplasty (THA). Let’s breakdown the recent schedule changes for each track:

BHR (Resurfacing) Track:

Zimmer M/L Taper Hip with Kinectiv Technology and VerSys Femoral Head Lawsuits

Published on: March 3, 2020 | By Clay Hodges

The human hip is a marvel of bioengineering. It allows for a 360-degree range of motion due to its “ball-in-socket” design. But as we age, this hip joint can sometimes fail. When it does, it may require a total hip replacement.

Hip replacements often use a variety of exotic metal alloys or ceramics to recreate the ball-in-socket mechanism of the human hip. A total hip replacement will typically consist of four parts:

The socket (or acetabular component).

Weight Gain Can Make You the Victim of a Defective Medical Device

Published on: December 18, 2019 | By Clay Hodges

Here is a strange cause and effect: if you don’t keep your weight at healthy levels, you may unwittingly become a victim to a negligent manufacturer selling a defective medical device. Which ultimately means your weight gain may one day lead you to me and to becoming a plaintiff in defective product litigation.

It Works This Way:

Let’s say your job is intense and over the years you begin to neglect your physical fitness. As you get a little older, in this sedentary state, you begin to gain weight. Gaining weight makes you less willing or able to exercise and you gain even more weight. Soon you start to feel aches in your hip or maybe your knees. This pain, over time, gets worse. Finally you consult an orthopedic surgeon, who recommends a total hip or knee replacement. Because you are a trusting soul, and because the hip pain is getting worse, you schedule hip replacement surgery. At this surgery your doctor implants the latest metal-on-metal (MoM) artificial hip components. A year or two later a new kind of hip pain develops, and this hip pain gets severe quickly. Your surgeon does blood work and tells you that your metal levels have spiked in your body and–of yeah, one other thing–you also have a “recalled” artificial hip implanted and that it needs to come out. So you are now forced to undergo revision surgery, and you eventually find your way to me to file a lawsuit over the injuries you sustained from this defective medical device.

Should I Automatically Get Revision Surgery If My Artificial Hip is Recalled?

Published on: December 4, 2019 | By Clay Hodges

I get this question fairly often, and it’s a good one. It usually goes something like this: a person had a total hip replacement several years ago. A few years pass. Then out of the blue the individual receives a letter from the artificial hip manufacturer or from the implanting surgeon explaining that a recall has been issued for the artificial hip components implanted. (And these are the lucky patients; many people who receive an artificial hip that was later recalled never get notification from their doctor, the manufacturer, or anyone. They don’t discover they have a defective artificial hip until the pain, metallosis, or other injury develops.) If I were in this position, and I received a recalled artificial hip, I would want to know: Should I have the recalled hip removed? And should I have the hip removed immediately?

As with most things in life, the answer is not simple.

I have been a product liability lawyer for many years now, and in that time I have spoken with hundreds of people suffering from defective products. I have heard dozens of variations on a similar narrative. While this is neither medical nor legal advice, here are my suggestions:

Smith & Nephew Birmingham Hip Lawsuits: Bellwether Trials Scheduled

Published on: November 6, 2019 | By Clay Hodges

Judge Catherine Blake, who is overseeing the Smith & Nephew Birmingham hip multi-district litigation in Baltimore, Maryland, recently issued an order setting out the bellwether trial schedule for the Birmingham Hip Resurfacing (BHR) cases.

Just to recap: there are two tracks of cases in the Smith & Nephew Birmingham hip litigation: BHR and THA. BHR refers to cases involving injured people who received Smith & Nephew Birmingham hip components as part of a resurfacing procedure. The BHR resurfacing system is a metal-on-metal (MoM) artificial hip, but in resurfacing procedures the hip “ball” bone is resurfaced with a metal covering and a metal acetabular shell is implanted into the hip socket, thus creating a MoM articulation. Smith & Nephew used cobalt and chromium to construct both of these resurfacing components. As with all metal-on-metal artificial hips, the Smith & Nephew BHR has been shown to wear down and leach metals into the blood and tissue of the patient, a condition called metallosis.

The second track of cases involves total hip arthroplasties (THA) using Smith & Nephew Birmingham components. These total hip replacements are constructed with Smith & Nephew BHR components and non-BHR components, but instead of resurfacing the “ball-bone” with a metal covering the bone is removed and replaced with a metal ball component (a femoral head).

Help! I Don’t Like My Product Liability Settlement Offer!

Published on: October 16, 2019 | By Clay Hodges

I get these calls fairly often. The caller will explain that her lawyer just called out of the blue with an offer to settle an artificial hip or prescription drug case. The person believes the offer is too low. Well, is it? That’s a complex question, and it may be, but there are distinct reasons why the person believes the offer is too low. Let’s take a look at what may be happening:

What We Have Here is a Failure to Communicate

Often, the problem starts with the lawyer’s failure to communicate. People will tell me that they never hear from their attorney, and then suddenly, after many months or even years have passed, the lawyer will call and quickly explain the terms of a settlement offer then hurry off the phone. This is a mistake. The lawyer should take as long as necessary to fully explain why the settlement number is what it is. In fact, it is important for the lawyer to keep the client updated on developments throughout the litigation. For example, if another plaintiff in the larger litigation loses an important bellwether case, the lawyer should call and report the loss and what it may mean for the litigation and how it might impact settlement (obviously, it’s not good for all plaintiffs if a bellwether case is lost). If the client understands generally how the multi-district litigation is progressing, the client will be more prepared when a settlement offer finally arrives.

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I was involved in a case for the faulty hip replacements. Clay Hodges represented me. I can't say enough about how much he has helped me. Clay was able to win multiple settlements on my behalf with most of them being the maximum amount able to be awarded. Matt J.

Clay, thank you sir for making a disheartening experience at least palatable, you and your staff were honest, caring and understanding through the entire process of my wife’s hip replacements, while monetary settlements never make the pain and suffering end, it sometimes is the only way people can fight back to right a wrong. J. V.

We are absolutely pleased with how Clay Hodges handled my husband’s hip replacement claim. He always kept us informed of the progress. And, his work resulted in a settlement which we are extremely pleased. Thank you, Clay! Carol L. & Norm L.