For the thousands of victims of the DePuy metal-on-metal hip implant, their window of opportunity to recover compensation for the injuries they sustained as a result of the defective medical device may have come and gone. There are limited circumstances, however, in which a skilled and experienced attorney could secure an extension to the stated statute of limitations.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the governmental organization that protects public health, entered the battlefield with the Johnson & Johnson's DePuy recall and ordered 21 manufacturers to collect information from patients - including blood tests for metallic ions.

A 30-year-old man needs a hip replacement. His surgeon recommends a DePuy ASR XL Acetabular system because its metal-on-metal design is more durable and allows for a more active life. Following the doctor's recommendations, the young man gets the DePuy hip implant.

In the past, few hip replacement surgeries were performed on people younger than the age of sixty under the theory that older people tend to be less physically active, therefore would place less stress on the artificial hip implant. Over the past decade, however, doctors have been more willing to consider hip replacement surgery in younger people who suffer from chronic inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis or those who have had injuries, fractures or bone tumors.

Patients who have undergone a metal-on-metal hip implant may be very concerned about the fairly recent reports of adverse health effects due to metal ion shavings which migrate into the surrounding hip tissue and bloodstream in some patients. The design of the metal-on-metal acetabular cup and ball make it likely that during physical activities the two parts will rub against one another, causing tiny particles of chromium and cobalt to shear off and enter other parts of the body.