Texas Biomet Compensation Lawyer

Biomet Shoulder Replacement Claim and Lawsuit Finalizes with $350,000 Plaintiff’s Settlement

Have you suffered injury or a death in the family because of problems with your biomedical shoulder implant?

Call your Texas Biomet Compensation Lawyer at Carabin Shaw at 800-862-1260. We can help you and your family with evaluating any injury or death and determining any possible claims.

Earlier this year, biomedical device manufacturer Biomet, Inc. agreed to a $350,000 monetary settlement to a man in Colorado who sued it alleging that he experienced failure in two “Comprehensive Reverse Shoulder Replacements.” According to his lawsuit claims and documents, the failures allegedly resulted from of a component part of the shoulder system that Biomet had actually recalled in 2010. (Alfonse A. Alarid v. Biomet, Inc., et al., No. 14-2667)

The suit was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Colorado. Per the documents filed in the District Court as part of the lawsuit, the plaintiff had a reverse method left shoulder replacement using Biomet’s Comprehensive Reverse Shoulder as its biomedical component in September 2009. An exact duplicate of the same device got implanted in his other shoulder during 2010. A “Reverse shoulder replacement” consists of a surgical implantation procedure which literally reverses the anatomy of a person’s shoulder. According to the untraversed claims in the lawsuit, the procedure is designed so that the ball is attached to the shoulder blade (scapula) and the socket is placed on top of the upper -arm bone (humerus). This reverses the normal human anatomy. By reversing the anatomy, a person’s deltoid muscle, one of the shoulder’s stronger muscles and one of the only “abducting” muscles which remains in the shoulder, is given muscular power and the ability to raise a person’s arm.

Within a short time after the implantation, both shoulders had failed at the tip of the joint between the baseplate and the trunnion, causing loss of function and pain. Due to this, the injured plaintiff had to have implant revision surgery to replace the shoulder again and remove these bio-medical devices.

According to plaintiff’s petition/complaint, the actual “Biomet Comprehensive Reverse Shoulder” was approved for sale by the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) in 2008. The specific approval process used was less stringent than the FDA’s usual before marketing approval process. This allowed the device to come on to the market without the usual benefits which result from human testing. This approval process is permitted if and when a device manufacturer can show that the device is “substantially equivalent” to a product which has been previously approved.

Plaintiff’s lawsuit was set for trial in the United States District Court for the District of Colorado on the morning of February 29, 2016. But, per an order dated February 4, 2016, the plaintiff filed a motion for judgment that same day. It stated that the case was settled and requested that a judgment be entered making the settlement an enforceable order of the Court. Per this Order, the Court entered a judgment in plaintiff’s favor, including attorney fees and costs, in the amount of $350,000. This ended that case with a substantial recovery for the plaintiff.

Have you suffered injury or a death in the family because of problems with your biomedical shoulder implant?

Call your Texas Biomet Compensation Lawyer at Carabin Shaw at 800-862-1260. We can help you and your family with evaluating any injury or death and determining any possible claims.