A man from Texas who underwent a knee replacement surgery has filed a product liability suit against the maker of his replacement knee. Defective products and surgeries are stressful enough when not combined but when an allegedly defective product is a part of a replacement surgery, the stress is sure to be overwhelming. The knee replacement at the heart of the product liability case loosens after surgery and requires a second replacement surgery.
In June 2008, the man from Texas underwent a knee replacement surgery where a Zimmer NexGen Knee was implanted in the man’s body. Sometime after the knee replacement operation, the man began to experience severe and debilitating pain.
According to the product liability suit, the man was advised the knee implant was “loosening” and the man had to undergo a second surgery in September 2009 to replace the artificial knee. Loosening or mechanical loosening happens when the attachment between the artificial knee and the bone loosens. A loose attachment can cause pain and can deteriorate the surrounding bone.
The products liability suit was filed against the maker of the artificial knee on August 23. The products liability suit argues that the maker of the artificial knee misled the medical community and the general public into believing the product was safe and effective for knee replacement surgery. To mislead the medical community and public, the company allegedly used deceptive, misleading and unconscionable sales methods to convince health professionals to use the product even though the company knew the product was unreasonably safe.
In his case, the man asserts strict products liability, failure to warn, defective design, negligence, breach of implied warranty and breach of express warranty. The man is seeking medical expenses, lost income, pain and suffering, punitive damages, disability and attorney’s fees.
Source: setexasrecord.com, “Product liability lawsuit filed against maker of knee replacement,” Michelle Keahey, Aug. 29, 2011
