The Durom Cup was touted as being perfect for younger, active people who needed a hip replacement.

The product would last longer than other replacements used in older patients, said officials with Zimmer Holdings, Inc, a multinational joint replacement device manufacturer.

Unlike the parts in traditional hip replacements, the Durom Cup is made from just one piece of material and was designed to tackle some of the normal problems with hip replacement parts, such as limited range of motion, wear on the bearing and instability.

But since the Zimmer Durom Cup was approved for use in this country in 2006, several doctors have had serious problems with the hip parts becoming loose, patients experiencing intense pain or the device otherwise failing, requiring additional surgery.

Prominent Los Angeles orthopedic surgeon Dr. Lawrence Dorr issued a public warning in April 2008. He said that that 14 of the 165 Durom hip systems implanted at his clinic required another surgery within two years to fix problems. Dr. Dorr said the cups were prone to shifting and in one instance simply popped off.

Dr. Dorr's warning prompted the company to conduct its own investigation, but Zimmer Holdings, Inc. continued to sell the devices. The Durom cup has been implanted in over 13,000 patients in the United States.

After reviewing data on over 3,100 cases, Zimmer suspended sales of the Durom cup in July 2008. Zimmer said their investigation found that implanting the cup required a high degree of precision and blamed the failure on surgeon error. The company said sales would resume after product labeling was created to provide better instructions about required special surgical techinques.

But according toDr. Dorr, a Zimmer Holdings, Inc. consultant who has implanted thousands of hip replacement devices over the years, said more than 8 percent of his patients that had the Durom Cup implanted required surgery within two years .

The Durom Cup is supposed to secure itself to the patient's hip socket as bone grows into the porous device. But in numerous revision surgeries, the cup will fall off and there are no signs that the bone has grown into the cup.

After a brief sales suspension, Zimmer, Inc. again began selling the Durom Hip Cup and continues to sell it to this day.

On August 11, 2008, the first lawsuit in the United States was filed on behalf of a patient with a failed Zimmer Durom Cup . Numerous suits have followed

If you have had problems with a Durom Cup implant, The Flynn Law Firm can help. Please gather as much of your medical history as you can from the first surgery and any additional surgeries, and call today.