Posted on Aug 5, 2013 9:28:00 AM
The FDA and DePuy have issued a class-1 recall, the highest alert, of DePuy’s femur and tibia implant called the LPS Lower Extremity Dovetail Intercalary Component. This is because this device has the potential to fracture when the patient walks normally or conducts normal activities – like ascending stairs, or rising from a chair. People weighing over 200 pounds or with high activity levels are at higher risk of fractures.
DePuy Orthopaedic has asked healthcare professionals, hospitals and surgeons to immediately stop distributing or using the 16 recalled lots.
DePuy’s LPS Lower Extremity Dovetail Intercalary Component is an implant designed to replace portions of the femur: the middle, top or lower end, or even the whole bone, as well the top of the tibia, especially when the bones and the joints require extensive surgical procedures, such as in the case of tumors, traumas, or infections.
A fractured implant may cause loss of function, pain, dislocation, and damage to bone areas necessary for revision surgery. DePuy believes that a revision surgery is not necessary for patients showing no symptoms.
The LPS Lower Extremity Dovetail Intercalary Component was manufactured and distributed between February 2007 and May 2013. To date, DePuy has received seven fracture complaints.
Thornton Law Firm is actively litigating cases against DePuy and Johnson & Johnson for its defective implants throughout Massachusetts and around the country. If you have any questions about your DePuy implant, please tell us your story online or call our office for a free and confidential consultation at 888-341-1405.
