Hip replacement patients like Rhonda Silva of California are frustrated and frightened by the prospect of undergoing further surgery on their ailing hips. Silva, who suffers from osteoporosis and received a Sulzer Orthopedic Hip Replacement in April of 2000, is facing new surgery after her original Sulzer Hip began failing recently. Silva, who is only 48, is now confined to her apartment because of the ailing hip and cannot enjoy long beachfront walks with her husband as she once did. Silva says that she is in "excruciating pain" and feels as if she has an alien living in her body.

Her recovery from the original hip surgery in April was not progressing well and her doctors were unsure of the reason. "By June, I was told that I wasn't progressing and the physical therapist said, 'we don't know what to do for you.'" In October Silva underwent another hip replacement surgery to replace the replacement. Almost unimaginably however, in December 2000, the replacement hip's manufacturer, Sulzer Orthopedics, announced a recall of their defective Sulzer Orthopedic Hip Replacements because they had allowed an oily substance to coat part of the artificial hip during the manufacturing process. Sulzer's December recall meant that Silva, who had already suffered two excruciatingly painful hip replacement surgeries in less than one year, would have to undergo yet another! Silva's doctor notified her of the recall and the need for another procedure. "He said 'Come to my office and I need to talk to you and you might want to call your husband,'" Silva said. "I know what's in store for me when I have the operation and dealing with that aftermath again," referring to the exhaustive Sulzer Orthopedic Hip Replacement surgical procedure and the lengthy rehabilitation period.

Silva's surgeon, Dr. Mac Reynolds, has at least 250 other patients who have received the defective Sulzer hip. "Devastating. Devastating. We see the gamut of emotions from people bursting out and crying to people being angry, to people storming out" Reynolds said. The oily substance found on the defective Sulzer hip prevents the bone from bonding with the replacement, resulting in a painful and debilitating state of affairs for Sulzer Orthopedic Hip Replacement patients. Sulzer tells InjuryBoard.com that it began to suspect problems with its hip replacements in September 2000 when doctors reported abnormally high post-surgical complications. However, InjuryBoard.com has learned that Sulzer may have known about the problem well before September. There is evidence that Sulzer began receiving adverse reports as far back as October 1999.

According to Sulzer, "It's not a fault of the surgeon, it's not a fault of the patient. It was ultimately a fault of one of our products, and we're taking full responsibility for that." The recall covers over 17,000 Sulzer Orthopedic Hip Replacements, yet it only applies to patients who underwent the so-called "force-fit" surgical method. In contrast, those who had the replacement cemented in place should not have a problem with the bone failing to bond with the Sulzer Orthopedic Hip Replacement and therefore are not subject to the recall. Sulzer Orthopedics supplies approximately 10% of all hip replacement parts used in the United States.