Cause for a Zimmer Knee Replacement

A healthy knee contains three main parts: cartilage, muscles and tendons. Each of these parts joins the femur (thighbone) to the tibia (shinbone), while the cartilage acts as a buffer between the bones, inhibiting any potential for bone grinding. In turn, the muscles and tendons connect the bones and hold the formed joint in place.

An unhealthy knee can become very painful. This condition is often times generally diagnosed as osteoarthritis. This problem may occur due to the following:

• Post-injury
• Excess body weight
• A genetic predisposition
• Regular wear and tear

For some patients who are diagnosed with osteoarthritis of the knees, an orthopedic surgeon may suggest knee replacement as the answer. A knee replacement surgery removes the damaged portions of the knee – replacing them with implants that function just as a natural knee would function.

Alleged Problems with a Zimmer Knee Replacement

A Zimmer knee replacement uses a particular implant model, the Zimmer NexGen CR-Flex. This knee implant system is uncemented, and relies on the bone’s natural healing process to naturally fuse with the cementless high-flex femoral component.

According to a June 19, 2010 New York Times article entitled “Surgeon vs. Knee Maker: Who’s Rejecting Whom” Dr. Richard A. Berger, an orthopedic surgeon and Zimmer consultant, “complain[ed] to Zimmer a while back that one if its artificial-knee models was failing prematurely, and he went public recently with a study that he says proves it.” According to the article, Dr. Berger performed about 125 Zimmer knee replacement surgeries in 2005. A year later, in 2006, “some X-rays showed lines where the implant met the thigh bone, an indication that the device was loose and had not fused completely.” The article noted that although patients could walk they were reporting pain which was apparently a result of the loose joint.

The New York Times article noted that Dr. Berger and Dr. Della Valle, another orthopaedic surgeon performing Zimmer knee replacements, presented a study at a medical meeting in 2009 and again in 2010 at a national meeting of the American Association of Orthopedic Surgeons where “[t]hey found that the uncemented Zimmer knee failed early in about 9 percent of some 100 patients studied.” Dr. Berger also said that the “knee exhibited signs of looseness in about hald of all patients and has since been replaced in some of them.”

Speak to a Lawyer Today About a Zimmer Knee Lawsuit

Zimmer could be found legally and financially responsible for manufacturing and selling an allegedly defective product without adequately researching or testing the product. If you or someone you know has been injured or suffered any side effects after receiving a Zimmer knee replacement, you should contact a Zimmer knee lawyer at Chaffin Luhana, LLP for a free and confidential Zimmer knee lawsuit or Zimmer knee MDL case review.

You may be entitled to compensation, and a lawyer at Chaffin Luhana can assist you. Call our toll free number today for a free, no-obligation case evaluation: 1-888-480-1123.