Knee Implant Patients Furious at DePuy Attune Failures. We are fielding many inquiries from knee implant patients who have been injured by the best selling knee implant device made by Johnson and Johnson and its unit DePuy Orthopaedics. Many of them are furious at having to undergo painful risky knee surgery again.
Johnson & Johnson and its DePuy Orthopaedics subsidiary, the world’s second-largest manufacturer of artificial knee implants are exposed to personal injury and product liability lawsuits over claims involving design problems with the Attune knee replacement device.
DePuy Attune Knee Implant Failures
According to lawsuit allegations, many patients had to undergo painful extensive revision surgery to remove and replace defective DePuy Attune knee devices. Case in point, Robert Long from Kentucky, suffered serious knee pain and it was found that his Attune knee replacement device was defective, lead to loosening of the tibial baseplate and the need for painful revision surgery. Long, filed his knee injury complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Kentucky.
Long claims that all of his injuries and complications were caused by the defective design, lack of adequate warnings, and unreasonably dangerous character of the Attune system.
Long further alleges that the manufacturers knew, or should have known, that there were problems with the design of the knee replacement system, yet continued to market and sell the knee components anyway, putting him and others at risk with the use of the Attune system.
Long had a right total knee replacement surgery in early 2015, with the DePuy Attune knee implants. The Attune knee replacement device is composed of a fixed tibial insert and fixed tibial baseplate. Shortly after the knee replacement surgery, Long began to experience severe knee pain, knee instability and trouble walking.
His doctors found aseptic loosening of the tibial baseplate, and Long had knee revision surgery two years later to have the device replaced.
What is the DePuy Synthes Attune Knee system?
The DePuy Synthes Attune Knee system was approved by the FDA for sale in 2010 via the 510(k) substantially equivalent approval process, as a replacement option for patients who are afflicted with knee arthritis, injury, or excessive wear and tear.
What is the problem with the DePuy Synthes Attune Knee system?
Many experts have noted serious post-marketing adverse event reports with the DePuy Synthes Attune Knee system. As of June 2017, the FDA has already about 1,400 reports involving failure with DePuy Attune knee replacements, including at least 633 cases where patients have already required revision surgery.
The FDA’s Manufacturer and User Facility Device Experience (MAUDE) database reveal many reports of tibial loosening at the implant–cement interface.
During re-do knee surgeries, surgeons find severe tibial loosening, the doctors note that the Attune knee replacement is subject to loosening because the device’s smooth surfaces make it difficult for the bone glue to take hold.
Interestingly, DePuy has quietly created a new version of the tibial base component which has been released, the underside of the new tibial base plate is not smooth, which allows better adhesion. DePuy has denied any problems with the Attune Primary knee system and made this announcement, “The ATTUNE Revision Knee System introduces a new chapter in the ATTUNE Knee story,” said Rajit Kamal, Vice President, and Global Platform Leader, Knees, DePuy Synthes. “With six years of successful clinical history and more than 575,000 ATTUNE Primary Knees implanted worldwide, the new ATTUNE Revision Knee System allows us to bring proprietary technologies of the ATTUNE Knee System to more patients around the world.”
A medical study found early failures in the DePuy Attune knee replacements
A study reported in the Journal of Knee Surgery, researchers found an increase in DePuy Attune knee loosening and failures related to the implant-cement interface.
DePuy Attune knee replacement lawsuits
DePuy Attune knee lawsuits claim that the key reason for the early knee implant failure is mechanical loosening, which is caused by the failure of the bond between the tibial baseplate and the implant-cement surface. The lawsuits claim that when the loosening happens, the knee implant device can disconnect from the existing bone, resulting in implant failure.
Injuries include DePuy knee replacement tibial baseplate loosening which leads to pain, infection, inflammation, and bone or muscle damage.
If you think you may have DePuy Attune Knee System device and are experiencing pain caused by metal corrosion or have suffered premature knee failure requiring full revision and emergency care, please call Dr. Shezad Malik Law Firm based in Dallas, Texas at 888-210-9693. We are handling DePuy Attune Knee System device failures nationwide.
Shezad Malik is an Internal Medicine and Cardiology specialist, a Texas Medical Doctor (retired) and Defective Medical Device and Dangerous Drug Attorney. Dr. Shezad Malik Law Firm has offices based in Fort Worth and Dallas and represents people who have suffered catastrophic and serious personal injuries including wrongful death, caused by the negligence or recklessness of others.
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