Stryker Hip Settlement Alert for Portland, Maine Residents - there has been a 1.4 billion dollar settlement in the Stryker Hip Implant MDL. Please take the time to get fully informed about the Stryker Master Settlement Agreement.

How Will the Portland, Maine Stryker Rejuvenate / ABGII Hip Statute of Limitations Affect You? If you are a victim of injuries sustained from a Stryker Rejuvenate or Stryker ABGII metal hip implant device, you should understand how the Portland, Maine Stryker Rejuvenate / ABGII hip statute of limitations may affect your ability to file a claim and recover damages. The statutes of limitations vary from state to state. Maine is on the high end of those statutes, allowing six years from the date the injury occurred in which to file a Maine Stryker Rejuvenate / ABGII hip lawsuit.

There are many factors involved in the statutes; you may not have discovered your injury until well after the Stryker Rejuvenate / ABGII hip recall, or you may have discovered your injuries early on. Even if you have not yet discovered any injuries associated with the Stryker Rejuvenate / ABGII hip recall, the odds are relatively high that you will. It is important that you have an experienced advocate on your side to help you decipher the Portland, Maine Stryker Rejuvenate / ABGII hip statute of limitations.Only a well-qualified hip metallosis lawyer can properly determine exactly how much time you have to file a hip metallosis lawsuit.

Were You Affected by the Stryker Rejuvenate / ABGII Hip Recall? The Stryker Rejuvenate hip recall occurred in July, 2012, along with the Stryker ABGII hip recall. Stryker sent out an urgent field safety notification in April, 2012 stating both devices had a higher-than-normal rate of failure and were prone to fretting and corrosion which could lead to the excess generation of metal ion debris. On a separate note, the DePuy ASR hip recall occurred in August, 2010. The DePuy Pinnacle hip implant has some similarities to the DePuy ASR, but the Pinnacle is NOT recalled, and is still being sold. The metal liner used with the Pinnacle was pulled from the market in 2013.

The Many Stryker Rejuvenate / ABGII Hip  Dangers and other Metal Hip Dangers: There are any number of Stryker Rejuvenate and ABGII hip dangers as well as dangers associated with other metal hip implants including the Pinnacle, the Biomet M2A Magnum, the Smith & Nephew R3, Zimmer Durom and Wright Conserve THS / Profemur hip implant devices. In addition to the development of hip metallosis and hip cobalt and chromium poisoning, patients can develop pseudo-tumors, which are soft tissue masses, and ALVAL (aseptic lymphocyte dominated vasculitis associated lesion). These Stryker Rejuvenate hip dangers can be extremely serious, and can persist, even after the hip implant is removed during revision surgery.

Understanding the Causes of DePuy ASR Hip Metal Debris: The metal components of a metal on metal hip implant can rub against one another during periods of activity, resulting in the shearing away of tiny metal ions from the implant, and leading to DePuy ASR hip metal debris being distributed in the hip tissues and in the bloodstream. This DePuy ASR hip metal debris can end up causing chromium and cobalt poisoning as well as metallosis. When the metal hip device is removed, these heavy metals can remain in the body for a significant length of time, particularly in those with poor renal function.

When Patients Develop DePuy ASR Hip Chromium and Cobalt Poisoning: When the tiny metal shards of cobalt and chromium reach the bloodstream, DePuy ASR hip chromium and cobalt poisoning can occur. Those with a higher sensitivity to heavy metals may experience serious adverse health symptoms related to the hip implant at relatively low levels, while others may not experience any symptoms until much higher levels are reached. The symptoms of Stryker Rejuvenate hip chromium and cobalt poisoning is similar to the metallosis symptoms from other metal on metal hips, and include:

• Severe dermatitis
• Short-term nerve impairment
• The formation of pseudo-tumors
• Liver necrosis
• The inability of the body to repair DNA
• Kidney function impairment
• Hearing loss and vision impairment
• Reproductive disorders
• Neurological disorders
• Cardiovascular disorders
• Shortness of breath and asthma
• Hypothyroidism
• Fatal cardiomyopathy
• Fatigue and the inability to concentrate
• Muscle atrophy
• Depression, anxiety, irritability

The Causes of Stryker Rejuvenate Hip Metallosis: When cobalt and chromium ions burrow into the hip tissues, Stryker Rejuvenate hip metallosis can occur. The typical symptoms of Stryker Rejuvenate hip metallosis include pain in the groin, hip or thigh, severe levels of inflammation, deterioration of bone and tissue, total hip failure and the necessity of Stryker Rejuvenate hip revision surgery, which is considered riskier and much more expensive than the original surgery. The Stryker Rejuvenate in particular has an especially long stem piece which is implanted deeply into the femur. When a surgeon must remove the stem, some liken the process to removing rebar from hard cement. Stryker Rejuvenate hip revision surgery can result in the patient being off work for at least six weeks to recuperate, and the surgery itself can take as long as four to five hours. This leaves patients vulnerable to excessive blood loss, infection and nerve damage.

The Status of Portland, Maine Hip Metallosis Lawsuits: If you are considering filing a hip metallosis lawsuit in Portland, Maine, it is important that you speak to an experienced Portland, Maine metal on metal hip lawyer. Since the Stryker Rejuvenate hip recall and the Stryker ABGII hip recall, over 2,300 lawsuits have been filed against Stryker. Seventeen of those were settled through mediation for an undisclosed amount, and bellwether trials are currently being scheduled. DePuy faced over 11,000 ASR lawsuits and more than 5,000 Pinnacle lawsuits. Johnson and Johnson, the parent company of DePuy, settled over 7,000 of the ASR lawsuits for $2.5 billion. The remainder of the ASR lawsuits and the Pinnacle lawsuits are pending.