Many recipients of hip implants who believed they were being implanted with a safe implant have found to their dismay that they received a metal-on-metal hip implant which has since been found to bring very real health risks. DePuy Orthotics, along with many other all-metal hip manufacturers, have been under scrutiny and many of these implants—including DePuy’s ASR have been recalled due to risks of failure and metallosis.

The DePuy Pinnacle metal hip implant is the same monoblock type of implant as DePuy’s ASR however has a few key differences. Of course the primary difference is that the ASR was recalled in 2010 while the Pinnacle is still on the market. Because of the recall of the ASR—which gained FDA approval based on being substantially equivalent to the Pinnacle—there are serious concerns regarding the Pinnacle as well. The Pinnacle received FDA approval in 2000, howevermany orthopedic experts believe that not only does the Pinnacle suffer from a defective design; it also has a propensity for early failure rates and metal toxicity.