After Two-Week Delay, First Federal ASR Hip Case Goes to Trial

After Two-Week Delay, First Federal ASR Hip Case Goes to Trial:

After a two-week delay, the first federal trial over Johnson & Johnson’s recalled ASR hip implants is set to begin Monday, Sept. 23, in an Ohio courtroom. The case, brought by 58-year-old Ann McCracken of Rochester, N.Y., could set a precedent for thousands of other plaintiffs who say they also were injured by the devices.

The bellwether case, which is being heard in the U. S. District Court for Northern District of Ohio in Toledo, is the first of 7,860 similar federal lawsuits against Johnson & Johnson’s DePuy Orthopaedics unit to go before a jury. More than 3,600 additional ASR lawsuits against the company are pending in state courts.

The problems with the ASR stem from the design: a metal cup (socket) and a metal ball. Both components are made from chromium and cobalt, and grind against each other during normal movements. This releases metal debris into the patient’s tissues, and can cause metal poisoning and serious tissue and bone damage. To address these complications, patients often require a second surgery, known as revision surgery.

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