Osteoarthritis is a Common Cause of Knee Replacement

DePuy Knee Lawsuit News

Most knee replacement patients are senior citizens with Osteoarthritis

Thursday, May 24, 2018 - Osteoarthritis is the gradual wearing away of the protective tissue, called the synovial membrane, that supports the knee joint by releasing fluid to lubricate the joint. The result of the deterioration of the synovial fluid can be painful friction caused by bone to bone contact. In addition, painful bone spurs can chip away and remain in the knee area causing even sharp, searing pain. When this happens the body reacts by producing fluid to surround and protect the knee joint which in turn causes a decrease in the knee's range of motion and even more pain. Osteoarthritis is irreversible as is the deterioration of the knee joint.

Patients with Osteoarthritis are usually in so much pain that they cannot walk without the aid of a cane or walker. Everyday activities like stepping up or down from a curb or negotiating a flight of stairs become a harrowing experience. To attempt to alleviate this condition, patients have opted for a total knee replacement.

A total knee replacement is performed in a hospital and under general anesthesia. A surgical incision is made from the middle of the shin bone to the lower portion of the thigh. Both the shin and thigh bones are sawed in two and the middle portion containing the arthritic knee joint is removed. This is done ideally by keeping the trauma to the surrounding muscles, tendons, and ligaments to a minimum. The artificial knee system is glued to the lower thigh bone and the upper shin bone. Knee replacement literature says that after a short period of rehabilitation and getting used to the artificial knee a patient should be able to walk again pain-free. Pain-free, that is if everything goes according to plan.

The Food and Drug Administration database of adverse events indicates that the DePuy Knee Replacement device is experiencing tenfold the number of complaints as their competitors. According to FDA date, approximately 25,000 out of the 500,000 or so total knee replacements have failed and have required the patient to undergo revision surgery to repair the device or have it removed entirely and replace with yet another artificial knee. So many DePuy Knee Systems have had to be redone that the company has brought to market an entirely redesigned knee system called the DePuy "Revision" Knee Replacement System.

The new DePuy Revision Knee Replacement System addresses the most common failure of the original DePuy Knee, that is, the loosening of the knee system at the point where it makes contact with the tibia (shin bone) due to the failure of the cement bonding compound. If the artificial knee device shifts ever so slightly, the entire mechanics of the knee changes and can cause the DePuy artificial knee to lock up, buckle and break and the results can be as catastrophic as falling headfirst down a flight of stairs and fracturing one's skull or breaking one's neck. The knee joint has the most difficult job in the body and is responsible for carrying a person's full weight on every step. That weight is amplified when a person jogs, runs or walks an inclined slope or a flight of stairs.

Thousands of patients are hiring DePuy Knee replacement lawyers and filing a claim against the company for the compensation they deserve.

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