Artificial Hip Sockets Fail to Ease Pain

July 2008

Faulty metal hip sockets are causing problems in patients undergoing hip replacement surgeries. Dr. Lawrence Dorr, a nationally known orthopedic surgeon in Los Angeles, found that many of his patients who received the sockets, manufactured by Zimmer Holdings, experienced pain and required additional surgery.

Dr. Dorr found that within months of routine replacements, patients were in agonizing pain. Dorr, a consultant for Zimmer, notified the company about the problematic sockets, known as the Durom cup, last year. When he received no response from Zimmer, he warned his colleagues about the sockets in April. Months later, Zimmer announced the suspension of sales of the sockets until it trained doctors on how to implant them to prevent any mistakes.

Experts say that these problems could have been avoided if the United States had implemented a national database that tracks the recovery of patients who undergo artificial hip and knee surgeries. Other industrialized countries, like Australia, Canada, Britain, and Sweden, operate under such a system. The Food and Drug Administration is supposed to monitor devices like artificial joints, but the agency is often overwhelmed by the number of products it oversees and many times doctors do not report problems.