Weitz & Luxenberg announces opening of investigation into Stryker ShapeMatch Cutting Guides injuries

New York, NY -- (SBWIRE) -- 04/15/2013 -- Stryker Orthopaedics – a maker of medical devices being sued for injuries claimed to have arisen from its various lines of hip-replacement implants – today acknowledged that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has branded the company's voluntarily recalled total knee-replacement positioning system a serious risk to patients.

A Stryker-issued statement said the FDA imposed a Class I designation – the most serious type – against the recall after determining that the Stryker ShapeMatch Cutting Guides system carries an unacceptable potential for causing significant injury and health problems.

Ellen Relkin, Esq., of New York-based mass-torts and personal-injury law firm Weitz & Luxenberg PC, said in reaction to the Stryker news that "when the FDA issues a Class I warning, it means there is considerable peril for consumers. In this instance, the group of consumers who especially need to be concerned are those implanted with Stryker's Triathalon Knee System – the ShapeMatch Cutting Guides are utilized for placing those knees in particular."

Relkin, who serves as chair of the Plaintiff's Steering Committee of the In Re: Stryker Rejuvenate and ABG II Hip Implant Litigation and is Liaison Counsel for that litigation, added that Weitz & Luxenberg is investigating cases of harm related to use of Stryker's ShapeMatch Cutting Guides and other Stryker knee products.

"We urge anyone who had total knee-replacement surgery – whether or not they know they had a Stryker implant placed with the aid of the ShapeMatch system – to contact us as soon as possible and tell us of problems they've experienced with their knees since surgery," said Relkin.

Stryker in November, 2012, dropped ShapeMatch from its product catalog, and told surgeons who previously purchased the cutting guides to stop using them. Stryker then recalled ShapeMatch in January, 2013.

About Weitz & Luxenberg
Founded in 1986 by attorneys Perry Weitz and Arthur Luxenberg, Weitz & Luxenberg PC today ranks among the nation=s leading law firms. Weitz & Luxenberg has secured more than $7.3 billion in verdicts and settlements for its clients. The firm's numerous practice areas include: asbestos and mesothelioma, defective medicines and devices, environmental pollutants, accidents, personal injury, and medical malpractice. Victims of accidents are invited to rely on Weitz & Luxenberg=s more than 25 years of handling such cases B begin by contacting the firm=s Client Relations department at 1-800-476-6070 or at clientrelations@weitzlux.com and ask for a free legal consultation. More information: www.weitzlux.com

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