DePuy Hip

February 12, 2016

New Robotically Assisted Hip Replacement Surgery Available

In the past few decades, there have been a lot of advances in surgery, and many of these advances have been the result of new technology available to assist surgeons. One major advancement that occurred in the 1990s was when doctors could use arthroscopy to perform joint surgery by making small holes with a drill instead of large open incisions used in traditional surgery.

A decade later, laparoscopes were commonly being used to allow doctors to perform surgery on a patient’s abdominal cavity without making a large cut. A laparoscopic gall bladder procedure greatly reduces the recovery time and risks associated with the procedure as compared to the older methods. Continue reading

February 10, 2016

Hip Replacement Surgery as Treatment for Arthritis

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

A recent news feature form WBAL TV looks at a total hip replacement procedure as a treatment for arthritis. The article focuses on a common belief held by prospective patients that having hip pain is just a normal sign of getting older and something you with which you have to live.

However, orthopedic surgeons are saying they are variety of procedures available these days, and you should not have to simply resolve yourself to living with the pain for the rest of your life. It should also be noted that many who are more active and like to run are experiencing hip pain and arthritis at a much earlier age than they were in years past, due to the increased activity. Continue reading

January 19, 2016

Hip Implant Patient Sues DePuy Orthopedics for Negligence

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

A defective hip replacement implant can lead to serious problems for an unsuspecting patient. Many of these devices have been shown to fail completely, become loose and cause pain and discomfort, and even release shards of metal into the patient’s bloodstream, causing a form of blood poisoning known as metalosis.

These defective hip implants have led to the need for second or even third surgeries and extended painful recovery periods with time missed from work and away from home and family. These defective hip devices have also been the basis for many personal injury lawsuits. Continue reading

January 12, 2016

Victim Filed Lawsuit against Johnson & Johnson for Defective Hip

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

Hip replacement surgery operations were once reserved for elderly patients who could no longer walk and those with a traumatic injury to the hip joint. These days, hundreds of thousands of total hip replacement procedures are being performed each year, and the trend seems to be increasing every year. Doctors are performing the surgery on younger patients who have developed arthritis from sports injuries and normal wear and tear. With more an more people engaging in activities like long distance running, including running marathons, it is no wonder we are seeing higher rates of joint disease. While running may keep you get in shape, it can be very hard on your joints.

Most doctors who perform these procedures are well-trained and competent surgeons who properly advise a patient of the risks and then perform as close to perfect a total hip replacement as possible. While there is going to a be a lot of pain and discomfort and a long recovery period, most patients end up very happy with the results. Continue reading

October 17, 2015

Hip Surgery for Psoriatic Arthritis Patients

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

A recent article from Medscape Multispecialty discusses how new studies show patients who suffer from psoriatic arthritis (PsA) or cutaneous psoriasis (PsC) do not have increased risk factors following total hip replacement, as compared to patients who suffer from osteoarthritis (OA).

Essentially, osteoarthritis is the far more common form of hip arthritis for patients who undergo a total hip replacement operation. This operation is also known as a hip arthroscopy, which is the medical term for a complete joint reconstruction or replacement. Continue reading

September 30, 2015

Cowboys Owner Jerry Jones Had Two Hip Replacement Surgeries in a Six-Week Span

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

There has been a lot of coverage about injuries and medical treatments on the roster of the Dallas Cowboys. The team suffered two significant losses to injury when wide receiver Dez Bryant broke his foot and quarterback Tony Romo broke his clavicle (collarbone). The team is left with downfield problems and Bradon Weeden as the quarterback. While New England Patriots fans might not care too much, this is obviously not a position any preseason Super Bowl hopeful wanted to find itself in.

In addition to the players on the roster, long-time Cowboys owner, Jerry Brown also underwent some significant medical procedures right before the season started. According to a recent report from NBC Sports, Jones had two hips replaced in a six-week period this summer. Continue reading

August 21, 2015

WWII Pilot Gets Total Hip Replacement Following Fight with Son

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

According to a recent news article from CBS, a World War II veteran who served as a fighter pilot was recently attacked, and the alleged attacker was his 63-year-old son. Authorities say victim’s son has been verbally abuse to victim in the past, and, on this occasion, allegedly punched his father’s dog, causing the two men to argue. During the course of their argument, defendant allegedly punched his father inside father’s home, causing him to fall to the floor. When he hit the floor, he suffered various injuries, including a broken hip.

At this point, sheriff’s deputies say defendant left the home with his father lying in pain on the floor without offering any assistance or calling for help. When other family members found victim, they called 911. Police and paramedics arrived at the home. Police obtained an arrest warrant for defendant and arrested him on charges of aggravated battery of a person over the age of 65. This is known as a sentencing enhancement, which is added to a charge when the victim is a child, elderly, or physically or mental disabled. It can add years to the sentence and add mandatory minimum prison time, as well. Defendant is being held on $100,000 bond and is currently in a county detention center. Continue reading

July 18, 2015

Doctors Offering Outpatient Hip Replacement Surgery

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

There have been a lot of medical developments in hip surgery in the past decade. Hip surgery used to involve spending weeks in recovery in hospital, where extreme care was taken to not allow a patient to flex their hip joint more than 90 degrees. If a newly-implanted artificial hip was flexed or stress much in the two weeks following surgery, the joint could dislodge itself, causing a complete failure.

For this reason, special equipment was needed, including exercise mats that would rise up and down, and they could actually lift themselves up to waist level so a patient could get on and off without putting stress on the hip joint. There was a also a large scar following an equally large open incision where a spike was implanted deep in the patient’s femur to anchor the new artificial hip joint. However, with new technology being developed, and a major push from insurance companies wanting to reduce the rehabilitation time to keep costs down, patients are often sent home two days following a total hip replacement surgery. Continue reading

June 29, 2015

Managing Joint Replacement Risks

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

Over the past decade, we have seen a tremendous increase in the number of patients electing to undergo total joint replacement surgery. This can include total knee replacement surgery, total hip replacement surgery, and even other newer surgical procedures, such as a total ankle replacement surgery. All of these total joint replacement surgeries involve the implantation of an artificial joint to reconstruct or replace the damaged joint through a medical process known as arthroplasty.

Even if the surgeon performs these surgeries flawlessly and the artificial joint implanted was properly designed and functioning, there is still a significant amount of risk a patient will face when electing to undergo total joint replacement surgery.

According to a recent feature article from U.S. News and World Report, it is important to manage joint replacement risks appropriately, so patients can get back on their feet sooner. Continue reading

June 23, 2015

Robotic Hip Surgery Purports to be Safer, Some Evidence Suggests Otherwise

by Jeffrey S. Glassman

In Minnesota, a local news article touted a new robotic surgery for total hip replacements at a nearby hospital. The article noted surgeons were relying less on the imperfect human eye and fallible human hand and instead leaning on the precision of robots.

The latest investment for the local surgical center costs millions of dollars. It’s an arm-assisted system, and promises to “take the guesswork” out of placement of hip replacement implants, allowing patients to receive fits that are customized. It’s one of two surgical centers in that state to use the robotic arm system, which was manufactured by Stryker – the same company at the center of hip replacement and knee replacement litigation for defective products.

Approximately 400 to 550 hip replacements are done at this surgical center alone each year. The hope is to reduce the number of additional surgeries sometimes needed to correct improper placement of hip replacements, which is largely attributed to “eyeballing techniques” used by surgeons to get the parts in the right place.