May 20th, 2011
In one of the most critical articles yet written, an investigator at the British Medical Journal has recently told the story of the DePuy ASR prosthetic hip: how it came onto the market; what testing was carried out; and how DePuy responded to complaints from surgeons.
Dr Deborah Cohen, working alongside Channel 4’s Dispatches programme, spoke to those involved in the UK, Australia and the USA and asks how it can be that such safety-critical products can be sold and fitted to patients without the sort of rigorous testing and independent clinical trials to which drugs are subjected? As well as looking at DePuy’s actions, she also considers the role played by the UK’s regulatory body, the MHRA.
The article is well worth reading for anyone interested in the failure of the ASR hip and other metal-on-metal prosthetic hips.
The full text can be found here: – http://www.bmj.com/content/342/bmj.d2905.full.
Pryers Solicitors LLP is a specialist medical law firm and acts for over 100 people, throughout the UK, who have suffered the failure of their ASR hip. Product liability claims are being brought against DePuy International Ltd.
Anyone who has suffered from the failure of their ASR joint is encouraged to contact Pryers’ Hip Product Liability Team on 01904 556600 or by email at hips@pryers-solicitors.co.uk.
Tags: Acts, British Medical Journal, Channel 4, Clinical Trials, Contact Team, Critical Articles, Critical Products, Deborah Cohen, Depuy International Ltd, Dispatches, Drugs, Email, Failure, Hips, Medical Law, Mhra, Product Liability Claims, Regulatory Body, Solicitors, Worth Reading
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November 9th, 2010
Pryers Solicitors have been instructed by a number of patients to bring claims for compensation in relation to the failure of De Puy ASR hip implants, which have been recalled by the manufacturer.
Since the product was launched in 2003, over 10,000 people in the UK have been fitted with a De Puy ASR hip implant, either during hip replacement or hip resurfacing.
Towards the end of 2009, experts in Australia became concerned that a large number of ASR hips were failing prematurely, often requiring further surgery. Earlier this year, the UK Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Authority (MHRA) issued a notice about the ASR hip, saying that there may be a problem. They began their own investigations. In September 2010, the manufacturer, De Puy, decided that the products should no longer be used; that unused stock should be returned to the manufacturer; and patients who had received an ASR device should be checked by their surgeons and, if they showed symptoms of failure of the device, revision surgery should be considered.
While the revision rate is still relatively low, at about 12 or 13% within five years, this is more than twice the rate that would be expected from other hip products. It is therefore expected that a very large number of patients will have hip pain and will require additional surgery due to the defect in the particular hip used. In many cases, such patients will be entitled to compensation from De Puy.
Pryers represent a number of people, from all over the UK, who have had problems with the De Puy ASR hip and who have required further surgery for revision, or are expected to require revision in the future. Claims for compensation will be brought against the manufacturer under the Consumer Protection Act, which requires manufacturers to pay compensation for injuries and financial losses caused by defective products. Most cases will be conducted on a “no win no fee” basis.
If you have been fitted with a De Puy ASR prosthesis, whether as a replacement or resurfacing, and are having hip pain or other hip symptoms, please contact Richard Greensit, a specialist medical solicitor at Pryers.
Richard can be contacted on 01904 556600 or at richard.starkie@pryers-solicitors.co.uk.
Update: Please see related post: DePuy ASR Hip Replacement Products
Tags: 7 September, Australia, Consumer Protection Act, David Sears, De Puy, Defective Products, Depuy, Failure, Family Member, Fee Basis, Financial Losses, Healthcare Products, Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency, Hip Implant, Hip Implants, Hip Pain, Hip Replacement, Hip Replacements, Hip Resurfacing, Hips, Investigations, Legal Advice, Litigation, Medical Device Alert, Medical Directors, Medicines, Medicines And Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency, Mhra, Regulatory Authority, Solicitors, Unused Stock
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July 9th, 2009
A schoolboy could receive a six-figure sum in compensation after he was run over by a bus.
Luke Murtagh, now 15, had been running for the Arriva South London bus a moment after it had left the stop. Although he knocked on the window, the vehicle did not stop.
However, Luke’s trousers then got caught in the wheels and he was pulled underneath, causing injuries to his legs, spine and hips.
He had to have surgery and skin grafts following the accident and still suffers from nightmares because of the horror.
With the assistance of his family, he took legal action against Arriva, which admitted liability but disputed the amount of compensation he should receive.
A hearing is now to take place at a later date, but it is thought that Luke’s damages could amount to hundreds of thousands of pounds.
In June 2008, compensation was awarded to 15-year-old Dolly Hughes after she was run over by the back tyres of an Armchair Passenger Transport Company bus.
The driver had driven off before she had got on, claiming she had been causing trouble, an allegation which was later disproved.
Tags: Allegation, Bus Accident, Company Bus, Damages, Dolly, Figure Sum, Hips, Hundreds Of Thousands, Legs, London Bus, Nightmares, Passenger Transport, Schoolboy, Six Figure, Skin Grafts, South London, Spine, Transport Company, Trousers, Tyres
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October 17th, 2008
A girl has launched a claim for compensation after an infection caught at birth caused her ongoing health problems.
Clarice Wright, now 11, caught chickenpox at 11 months old, the Gazette Live reports.
However, after she was discharged by the doctors, her condition worsened and she began feeling drowsy and vomiting.
Her mother Demelza contacted medics at Cambridge Medical Group, Linthorpe, but she claims they refused to do a home visit.
An infection set in and got into Clarice’s hip, causing it to fracture.
As a result, she now has one leg longer than the other and is unable to walk long distances.
She also faces future surgery on her legs and hips.
Through her mother, she has now launched a legal bid to claim for compensation of around £300,000.
Cambridge Medical Group declined to comment on the case.
According to NCT, when babies are exposed to chickenpox after they are born they may be slightly more at risk than older children. In such cases the disease would begin between seven and 28 days after birth.
Tags: 28 Days, 300k, Babies, Bid, Cambridge, Chickenpox, Compensation Claim, Doctors, Fracture, Health Problems, Hips, Legs, Long Distances, Medical Group, Medics, Risk
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