Exactech Knee Implant Lawsuits

In 2021, the surgical implant manufacturer Exactech announced a recall of all its Optetrak® implant systems used in total knee replacement surgeries since 2004. The recall came after the company discovered that a problem with the product packaging was causing the polyethylene insert component in the Optetrak implants to degrade not function properly. This defect is causing the Optetrak knee implant systems to prematurely fail which ultimately requires patients to undergo additional revision surgery.

Individuals who had the Exactech Optetrak system implanted and suffered premature failure due to this defect can file a product liability lawsuit against Exactech and potentially recover financial compensation for their pain and medical bills. Our firm is currently accepting Optetrak implant failure cases from patients who suffered a premature failure to their knee replacement implant and had to undergo revision surgery.

Where Are We in the Exactech Lawsuits in 2025?

Exactech, a medical device manufacturer specializing in joint replacement implants, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in October 2024 due to mounting litigation costs associated with defective knee, hip, and ankle implants.

This bankruptcy filing has resulted in an automatic stay of all ongoing lawsuits, including those filed by plaintiffs who experienced complications from Exactech knee replacements. Consequently, legal proceedings are currently paused, and new claims must be filed through the bankruptcy court.

A status conference is scheduled for January 2025 to address the impact of the bankruptcy on existing claims, with joint status reports required every 90 days thereafter.

Despite the pause in litigation, there is cautious optimism among legal experts that Exactech knee and hip replacement lawsuits may begin to resolve on a global settlement in 2025, even amidst the bankruptcy proceedings.

The bankruptcy court is expected to establish a process for addressing claims, which may include setting up a trust funded by Exactech’s assets to compensate affected patients.

You need to understand that the bankrupcy is based on this litigation.  Exactech lawyers have been threatening this forever.  So this bankruptcy is in no small part to get leverage is settlement negotations.  Here is the thing: it will work to some extent.  These cases are unlikely to settle for full value.  But we are still optimistic of getting reasonable Exactech settlement amounts that are not far from their real value.

Recall of Exactech Knee Replacement Implants

Exactech is an international medical device manufacturer based in Gainesville, Florida. The company was originally founded in the 1980s by a group of orthopedic surgeons and it specializes in surgical implants for joint replacements. The Optetrak and Optetrak Logic are Exactech’s proprietary line of knee replacement implant systems.

Last year, Exactech commenced a global recall of all Optetrak system knee replacement implants manufactured after 2004. The recall impacts over 140,000 Optetrak implants used in knee replacement surgeries (referred to as total knee arthroplasty) in the U.S. Total knee replacement surgery is generally utilized to for the treatment of severe chronic pain caused by arthritis.

The Optetrak recall was initiated after Exactech realized that the vacuum-seal packaging used for its products since 2004 was defective. The packaging was not airtight which allowed the polyethylene insert component of the Optetrak system to oxidize and degrade before use. The degraded insert was not able to function properly triggering excessive wear and tear. This excessive stress from the defective insert eventually causes the Optetrak knee replacement system to fail prematurely.

Premature failure of the Optetrak knee replacement implant due to the defective insert causes significant pain and immobility in the knee. Patients who suffer an early failure of their Optetrak knee implant eventually have to undergo additional corrective surgery to replace the defective implant.

Exactech is issuing a letter about the Optetrak recall to all known patients and their doctors.  The letter advises doctors to immediately stop using Optetrak implant systems in all knee replacement surgeries.

Patients who already have an Optetrak implant system in their knee are advised to consult with their doctor to determine the best course of action. Exactech is requesting doctors to keep an index of all their patients with Optetrak implants and carefully monitor them for signs of potential insert failure.

Symptoms that an Optetrak implant may have failed due to the defective polyethylene insert include pain and swelling, inability to bear weight on the joint, grinding in the joint, or immobility in the knee. Doctors should take X-rays when a failed implant is suspected so as to evaluate the status of the implant.

Exactech Implant Lawsuits

Like all manufacturers, Exactech has a legal obligation to ensure that their surgical implants are safe and free of any potentially harmful defects or flaws. The recall of all Optetrak implant systems is essentially an admission by Exactech that these implants contained a manufacturing defect, therefore, Exactech can be held liable for all resulting injuries and damages.

Any patient who had the Optetrak knee system surgically implanted during their knee surgery can pursue a product liability case against Exactech if the Optetrak implant failed and they needed corrective surgery to replace it.  If a plaintiff brings a successful Optetrak knee implant lawsuit, they would be entitled to damages for (a) pain & suffering; (b) medical expenses related to the revision surgery or other medical treatment; and (c) any lost wages or income caused by the knee implant failure.

Prior Exactech Implant Lawsuits

The Exactech Optetrak knee replacement implant had an extensive history of litigation even before the recall due to high failure rates and other problems. The Optetrak was approved under the abbreviated 501(k) FDA clearance process, which means it was never subject to a full FDA review and approval.  The 510(k) clearance process is a notification system for medical device manufacturers to inform the FDA at least 90 days before marketing a device claimed to be “substantially equivalent” to a device the FDA had approved for sale before 1976. This process does not require clinical testing and clearance for sale under the 510(k) process does not equate to FDA approval. That comes with risk, right?

Very soon after the implant was released, Exactech became aware of abnormally higher failure rates with the Optetrak implant system compared to other devices.

Reports on Optetrak knee implants in the FDA’s Manufacturer and User Facility Device Experience (MAUDE) showed that the implants were failing at much higher rate than any other type of implant devices. There are currently so many complaints about Optetrak implants in MAUDE that a search of the database exceeds the display limit of 500.  The adverse reports in MAUDE only reflected a percentage of the actual failures. Exactech was internally aware of countless other failures that were not reported in MAUDE.

Between 2015 and 2017, reports of the excessively high failure rates with the Optetrak implants sparked a number of product lawsuits against Exactech by patients who experienced premature implant failures. These previous Optetrak implant lawsuits alleged that the high failure rate was related to general design defects, including the unique “finned” design feature of the original Optetrak system.

Instead of warnings doctors and patients, Exactech responded to this by pursuing a “silent” recall in which they gradually phased out the finned design without announcing anything. When this change to the design of the Optetrak did nothing to decrease the alarmingly high failure rates, Exactech began to investigation other explanations. This is was eventually led them to discovery the problem with the defective vacuum-seal packing which was causing the polyethylene inserts to prematurely degrade and malfunction.

We don’t have any reported settlements or verdicts for Exactech knee implant lawsuits. Many of the previous Optetrak cases appeared to get resolved by settlement, but the terms were confidential so we can’t be certain what the likely value of these cases will be.

However, we think Exactech knee implant lawsuits will have a settlement value comparable to tort cases involving moderate knee injuries. The average payout in personal injury cases involving knee injuries is $70,000 to $150,000 and this is probably what we can expect for the value of Optetrak product cases.  Is that still the value after this bankruptcy?  That is a good question.

The bankruptcy process typically involves the establishment of a compensation trust to pay claims against the company. The funding for such a trust will be determined by Exactech’s remaining assets and the bankruptcy court’s approval. As a result, the settlement values for Exactech knee implant lawsuits may be significantly lower than the $70,000 to $150,000 range we originally expect.  So we will see how it plays out.  We are still hopeful.