The Biomet M2A Magnum Hip Implant Litigation: A Brief Summary and Update

June 17, 2015 - Biomet M2A Magnum Hip Issues, including Pseudotumors

If you are the recipient of a Biomet M2A Magnum hip implant, you may have experienced one or more problems associated with the device. Many patients who were implanted with a M2A Magnum device suffered cobalt and chromium toxicity, Biomet M2A Magnum hip pseudotumors and symptoms of metallosis. All of these issues have the potential to be extremely serious, and, as a result, many patients with a Biomet M2A Magnum hip implant were forced to undergo revision surgery in order to have the M2A Magnum removed, and replaced with a safer model.

The widespread use of all-metal hip implants, including the M2A Magnum, have vastly increased the incidence of pseudotumors. One study done in the Netherlands concluded patients with all-metal implants had at least four times the risk of developing a pseudotumor. Pseudotumors are usually non-cancerous and non-infectious, however they can grow larger than an orange. The Biomet M2A Magnum hip pseudotumor can cause pain, inflammation or pressure on surrounding body parts, and, in some cases, the pseudotumors have been known to explode when opened up during surgery.

Biomet M2A Magnum Hip Metallosis

Patients with all-metal hip implants such as the M2A Magnum may develop symptoms of Biomet M2A Magnum hip metallosis. Metallosis occurs when microscopic metal ions become lodged in the surrounding hip tissues after shearing away from the metal device. The human body perceives these cobalt and chromium ions as foreign bodies, therefore attempts to dispel the metal shards with special white blood cells which attack the ions. It is impossible for these macrophages to dispel the metal ions, therefore damage begins to accumulate. Those with a particular sensitivity to metals are more likely to experience metallosis than others. Symptoms of Biomet M2A Magnum hip metallosis include pain in the hip, thigh or groin region, inflammation which grows progressively worse, deterioration and eventual death of the bone and tissues in the hip region, and failure of the metal hip implant. 

When Was the Biomet M2A Magnum MDL Established?

After numerous lawsuits were filed against Biomet regarding the M2A Magnum hip implant, a federal judicial panel centralized the lawsuits. Eight cases pending in various federal courts and all future case filings to the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana were combined into an a Multidistrict Litigation. Defendants in the MDL were Biomet, Inc., Biomet Orthopedics, LLC, Biomet Fair Lawn, LLC, Biomet Manufacturing Corporation, and Biomet U.S. Reconstruction. In January, 2014, Biomet agreed to settle more than 1,000 suits consolidated into this MDL, however only settled with patients who had undergone Biomet M2A Magnum hip revision surgery.

Are There Other Biomet M2A Magnum Hip Lawsuits Filed?

Other Biomet M2A Magnum hip lawsuits have been filed; several Biomet cases have been filed in a New Jersey state court, and in the past, the New Jersey Supreme Court has centralized litigation involving other hip implants. One plaintiff, Frank Chuffo, of St. Louis, Missouri, brought his Biomet lawsuit after he tested at abnormally high levels of cobalt and chromium in 2012. Although Chuffo had revision surgery to remove the Biomet M2A Magnum hip device, his product liability lawsuit against Biomet alleges negligence, strict liabilities for inadequate warnings, failure to adequately test, failure of the product to live up to Biomet’s representations, negligent misrepresentation, defective design, and breach of express and implied warranties.  

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