Zimmer Knee Lawsuit, Possible Recall

Zimmer Inc. is acting both as plaintiff and defendant in various lawsuits taking place in state and federal courts across the country. The first cases were those that patients of their Zimmer knee replacement device filed when they experienced serious side effects associated with the joint replacement device, including pain and swelling as well as difficulty walking. Zimmer patients, understandably upset about these side effects, have been filing lawsuits against the medical device manufacturers in order to gain some kind of compensation for their injuries. Compensation of this type will help take care of medical
bills, wages lost, and other costs related to these Zimmer knee side effects.

Surgeons Blame Knee Replacement Failures on Manufacturers

In March 2010, during a conference of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, at least two knee replacement surgeons provided data suggesting the Zimmer NexGen CR-Flex Knee Replacement failure rate may possibly be as high as nine percent (9%) — far too high for a knee replacement device. The lead author of the study, Dr. Richard Berger, reported that the rate of failure for these cementless Zimmer knee replacements were "unacceptably high."  When the research was conducted, researchers were monitoring 108 knee replacement surgeries where the surgeons were using a Zimmer NexGen CR-Flex knee replacement device.  They discovered that 9 of those patients had to have Zimmer knee revision surgery.

Zimmer NexGen Knee Failures Create Painful Complications

Patients suffering from a NexGen knee failure are continuing to look at their legal options including being part of a Zimmer NexGen knee lawsuit.  Total knee replacements have been around for some time now, and are largely considered a success. 85%-90% of total knee replacements are expected to last for up to 10 years or even longer. However, some recipients of the Zimmer NexGen CR-Flex implant are experiencing a loosening and NexGen knee failure, sometimes within the first two years of surgery.

In September 2010, the tibial portion of the Zimmer CR-Flex implant was recalled. People are coming forward and reporting serious problems with their implants, often requiring a second revision surgery. Some of the symptoms of loosening include an unusual stiffness in the knee, persistent pain, loss in range of motion and a general inability for the knee to support any resistance. While loosening can occur in either cemented or non-cemented version on a knee implant, in an uncemented implant the situation can be quite serious. This can lead to soft tissue damage and affect the blood supply.

A loose knee implant causes pain whenever the patient attempts to walk. This problem will worsen as the bone of the joint continues to deteriorate. For this reason, those who suffer from loosening of their NexGen knee implants must have them removed through knee revision surgery. Patients who have received the NexGen knee implants continue to complain about premature loosening and joint pain and the scrutiny has caused those not experience pain yet, to worry about the possibility of a breakdown to come soon.

Zimmer Seems Unfazed By Knee Problems

Although several lawsuits against them are currently being evaluated by personal injury lawyers, billion-dollar company Zimmer Holdings does not seem to be showing too much damage from allegations that their knee replacement systems are fallible and manufactured poorly. The company, which is the fourth largest orthopedic and spine device manufacturer in the world, is based in Warsaw, Indiana and reported profits of $4.2 billion in 2010 despite reports of failure associated with one of their popular products.
DePuy Orthopedics, Stryker, and Medtronic companies are all ahead of Zimmer in revenue. Each of these United States-based companies is facing its own set of public relations issues having to do with the effectiveness of or complications related to some of their products, much like Zimmer.