Medical Device Lawsuits
Medical device lawsuits often occur when patients are injured by defective or unsafe medical devices. These lawsuits typically fall under product liability law and can involve claims related to design defects, manufacturing defects, or failure-to-warn defects.
These lawsuits aim to provide compensation for medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and other related damages.
Highlighting Hip Replacements
Beasley Allen Law Firm’s medical attorneys have experience handling cases of defective medical devices, including metal-on-metal hip implants.
In the past decade, some artificial hips were made with metal cup liners, believed to be more durable. However, many of these metal hips began failing within 10 to 15 years. This failure can lead to metallosis, where metal particles enter the bloodstream, causing swelling and bone damage.
Doctors advise anyone with a metal hip implant to consult their surgeon regularly, even if there are no apparent issues, to check for signs of failure or metallosis. Those who experience problems like metallosis after hip replacement surgery might be able to pursue legal action for compensation.
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Andy Birchfield Mass Torts Section Head Montgomery, AL -
Frank Woodson Managing Attorney (Mobile) Mobile, AL -
Brittany Scott Principal Atlanta, GA -
Melissa Prickett Principal Montgomery, AL -
Navan Ward Principal Atlanta, GA -
Soo Seok Yang Principal Montgomery, AL
Types of Devices
Medical devices are tools and equipment used in healthcare, excluding vaccines or medicines. These devices help with many things like preventing illnesses, diagnosing health issues, treating conditions, monitoring health, aiding in recovery, and providing comfort. They are essential for making healthcare accessible to everyone, keeping an eye on our health, and managing health crises or emergencies. There are a several different types of devices, including:
- Single-Use Devices – Syringes, catheters
- Implantable Devices – Hip prostheses, pacemakers
- Imaging Devices – Ultrasound machines, CT scanners
- Medical Equipment – Anesthesia machines, patient monitors, hemodialysis machines
- Software – Computer-aided diagnostics
- In Vitro Diagnostics – Glucometers, HIV tests
- Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) – Masks, gowns, gloves
- Surgical and Laboratory Instruments
Medical devices are extremely important in today’s healthcare- making it all the more important that they are manufactured correctly.
Relying on Recalls
In the United States, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ensures that medical devices being sold are safe and function properly. If a medical device company discovers an issue with their product, it is their responsibility to initiate a recall to correct or remove the issue and to notify the FDA.
There are three types of medical device recalls:
- Class I: This is the most serious type of recall. It means there’s a high chance that using the product could cause serious health problems or even death.
- Class II: This type of recall indicates that the product might cause temporary or reversible health issues. The risk of serious health problems is low.
- Class III: This is the least serious type of recall. It means that using the product is unlikely to cause any health problems.
Medical device recalls are quite common and impact millions of devices in the U.S. Unfortunately, the process to fix these issues can take a long time, which means patients might be at risk for longer periods. With recalls happening more often and affecting more devices, it’s crucial to quickly and accurately identify which devices are problematic to keep patients safe.
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