"Zimmer Hip Took Away Four Years of My Life"

Orlando, FLAlthough Karen is pushing 82, she had a very active life, until she had a Zimmer Durom Cup. "I was playing tennis and bowling before this Zimmer hip replacement surgery," she says. "Now I can still play golf but I have to use a cart and my putter to help me walk." Karen got the Zimmer hip four years ago, and now she is considering revision surgery.

Karen (not her real name) says that, since getting the Zimmer Durom Cup hip replacement, it has never "felt right" and she has lost a good deal of mobility. "As soon as I got the Zimmer hip I took physical therapy—as much as my insurance would cover—and did exercises at home; I did everything I was supposed to do," she says.

"But I still couldn’t get my balance or strength back," adds Karen. "One doctor said it was because I had a weakness in my gluteus maximus and another doctor said it was due to scoliosis—I had a minor back surgery but that was solved years ago and I don't have a back problem. Finally they just gave up on me and said they couldn't do anymore. I have just learned to do what I can."

To further explain how active she was, Karen taught physical education all her life. Now she finds it hard to walk any distance. "I don't have a lot of pain anymore but it is usually chronic if I walk more than a quarter of a mile in the morning—often I can't walk that far. And I have to walk with a cane. I get a cart to push when I go shopping; I can do without it but my walk is so ungainly and it hurts too much; my whole body limps without it.

"I wanted to see my orthopedic surgeon again but he moved to Kentucky. I did call him with these problems and he sent me to an orthopedic surgeon in Minnesota who did some x-rays and couldn't find anything wrong. No one has told me that I need a bone density test to determine if I have a defective device—I found out about that online.

"I figured I should call the hospital and see what kind of hip I was given. Surprise, surprise, they told me about Zimmer defective hip replacements and sure enough, I have a Zimmer Durom Cup that was recalled. They actually told me that I have one of the defective hips. No wonder I've had all this trouble.

"Next, I went online and figured I should contact somebody. I found information about hip and knee replacement lawsuits on LawyersandSettlements and filled out your form. I don't know what will be recommended at my age—if it would help, and if I could be assured that I would be better off than I am now, I would have revision surgery.

"Still, I feel lucky that I can do what I can do at my age, but four years have been taken away from me. When my grandkids visit I can't play tag or hide-and-seek anymore. I can barely walk down to the dock—I've fallen quite a few times on uneven ground—and that is hard.

"I've learned to live with it and that's what you have to do at some point, but I would like to join a Zimmer class action; these medical device makers shouldn't be allowed to put defective devices on the market and make money."