Pain Pump Linked to Permanent Joint Damage
You’ve had orthopedic surgery and now months later your joint is a mess – constant pain, loss of motion, stiffness, numbness, and clicking and grinding of the joint. If you were given a pain pump following surgery, a likely cause of your shoulder problems is postarthroscopic glenohumeral chondrolysis (PAGCL), a non-reversible condition that results in the degeneration of the hyaline cartilage tissue in the shoulder joint. Although the majority of PAGCL cases involve shoulder surgery, there have been several cases where a knee joint has been damaged by a pain pump.
Over the past decade, shoulder infusion pain pumps were used to deliver pain medications to the shoulder following surgery. Without FDA approval or adequate research, pain pump manufacturers instructed surgeons to insert the catheter of the pain pump directly into the shoulder joint.
Tragically, studies have linked this untested procedure to PAGCL, a non-reversible condition that results in the degeneration of the hyaline cartilage tissue in the shoulder joint. The degeneration problem of the cartilage is thought to have been created by a combination of the high acidity of the pain medication combined with displacement of the fluid surrounding the labrum. The end result is the loss of cartilage in the shoulder joint within months. Unfortunately, the only option for a normal life is for the victim to undergo a shoulder replacement.
If you or a loved one has experienced PAGCL due to the use of a pain pump following surgery, contact Craig Swapp & Associates today. You may be entitled to full compensation from the pain pump manufacturer for the permanent and deliberating injury to your shoulder.
To submit the facts of your case, complete our “Free Case Review” form or by calling us at 1-800-404-9000 for a FREE case evaluation. For more detailed information about pain pumps and PAGCL, please visit our shoulder pain pump lawsuit website.
