Birmingham Hip Replacement Recall
This isn t the first time smith nephew has issued recalls of their popular hip implants.
Birmingham hip replacement recall. Joint registry revealed that metal devices had more problems than older devices and they were less durable. Depuy voluntarily recalled its hip systems after unpublished data from the u k. Consumers and health professionals are advised that smith nephew in consultation with the tga has issued a hazard alert regarding the birmingham hip resurfacing bhr system advising of additional warnings when used in certain patient groups. Known settlements amount to at least 2 2 billion.
The birmingham hip resurfacing bhr system is a conservative approach to hip arthroplasty in which an all metal bearing couple is used to preserve rather than replace a patient s femoral head and neck it was first implanted in july 1997 and was approved for use in the united states by the food and drug administration in 2006. Health professionals and patients are advised that data collected by the australian national joint. Depuy s 2010 recall involved the company s articular surface replacement asr acetabular hip system and asr hip resurfacing system. Smith nephew manufacturers several hip replacement systems including the smf hip implants the redapt hip implants and the r3 acetabular hip system.
The latter was sold only abroad. Hip replacement lawsuits claim patients were left with serious side effects due to device design or defects. Side effects include allergic reactions metal poisoning infection nerve damage and bone loss. The bhr system is made up of multiple components and is used.
The birmingham hip replacement also known as the bhr is a metal on metal hip implant made of cobalt and chromium metal alloys. The bhr implant consists of a spherical metal cap on the femur leg which connects to a metal cup installed within the hip socket. The birmingham hip modular head bhmh manufactured by smith nephew is a component of a metal on metal mom total conventional hip replacement system that consists of a birmingham hip acetabular cup a birmingham hip modular head and a conventional femoral stem see diagram below. Back in 2012 they also recalled the r3 acetabular system.
Despite its promise however numerous recipients of the birmingham hip replacement system have reported serious pain or injury associated with failure of the device. Similar to the birmingham hip recall smith nephew issued a worldwide voluntary recall of the smf redapt and r3 metal liners in june 2012 after reports of device loosening hip pain device failure infection sensitivity to metal and. Food and drug administration issued its own warning on the r3 system. The bhr is a hip resurfacing implant which is used as an alternative to a full hip replacement.
Thousands of hip replacement lawsuits have been filed against various device makers. This led to many people filing hip lawsuit claims. Hazard alert additional warnings for use in certain patient groups. Hip resurfacing can also reduce the risk of hip dislocation and facilitate future replacement or revision surgery if either turns out to be necessary.